. . . And While We're On The Subject Of Sunshine 
This Year Promises To Be Brighter Than 1995. Sunshine Is Filtering Into Some 
Of The Darker Corners Of The Area's Courtrooms And Meeting Rooms.

By JEFF WALSH; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Friday, January 13, 1995 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





WILKES-BARRE -- A Wilkes-Barre woman waived her right to a preliminary
hearing Thursday on charges that she abused a child she was babysitting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Lisa Kizer, 26, of Maxwell Street, Wilkes-Barre, has been charged with
simple assault and endangering the welfare of children. She and her attorney,
Joseph Vullo, asked District Justice Martin Kane of Wilkes-Barre to send her
case to Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas. The case has not yet been
scheduled for county court. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The charges stem from an incident on Sept. 21 when Dwayne Conahan of East
Thomas Street, Wilkes-Barre, arrived at Kizer's house at 4:30 p.m. to pick up
his son. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kizer spanked 3-year-old Erick Conahan with a paddle and pulled his hair
and ears, according to the arrest affidavit. Conahan had found Kizer through a
newspaper advertisement, according to the affidavit. Conahan had been using
Kizer's babysitting services for six weeks, said the affidavit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vullo refused to comment on the case. Messages left with Kizer and Conahan
were not returned. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kizer told Conahan that his son had an accident when she took him and other
children to an area McDonald's restaurant, according to the affidavit. Kizer's
son was pushing Erick in a stroller when Erick sustained a cut to his nose,
the affidavit said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 After Conahan asked why she didn't take him to a hospital, Kizer told him
that she didn't because she knew Conahan was about to arrive, the affidavit
said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Conahan took his son to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where the child was
treated for an abrasion to the tip of his nose, bumps, bruises on his head and
both ears, scratches on his stomach and back, and bruising and redness to the
child's buttocks, according to the affidavit. Those injuries are "consistent
with child abuse," according to the affidavit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 When officials from Luzerne County Children &amp; Youth Services arrived, Erick
told caseworker Elaine Alto that Kizer pulled his ears and spanked him with a
paddle, according to the affidavit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A month later, Wilkes-Barre Police Detective William Berneski interviewed
the child, and, according to the affidavit, he was told the same story: that
Kizer pulled down his pants and spanked him with a paddle and had also pulled
his hair and ears. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 More than a week later, the child recounted the same story again for Alto
and Berneski, adding that Kizer pulled his hair at McDonald's because he had
been running and jumping around, according to the affidavit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Accused Child Abuser Waives Right To Hearing A Babysitter Is Charged With Assaulting A 3-year-old Boy