The 25-year-old Manchester man was arraigned yesterday in Nashua District Court, where Judge James Leary raised his bail to $100,000, cash only.
Meza, who is being held at the Valley Street jail in Manchester, faces three counts of first-degree assault for harming 3-month-old Mariah Meza. Police say he started abusing the girl when she was just two weeks old, ultimately leaving her with 17 fractured bones in her limbs and chest.
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The suspect also failed to appear for a court date in Nashua four years ago, Goulden said.
Meza, who appeared for the arraignment by video from the Nashua police station, said he could not afford bail and asked for the court's compassion.
"I want another chance to take care of the baby," he said.
Leary was unmoved. He ordered that Meza could have no contact with his daughter "in any way, shape or form." If he posts bail, he may not come within 100 yards for her, and he may not travel beyond the New Hampshire border.
Meza is scheduled to return to court Nov. 23 for a probable cause hearing.
Sgt. Andrew Lavoie of the Nashua police said the department is continuing its investigation of the alleged abuse and may yet bring more charges against Meza.
Prosecutors are still waiting to arraign the baby's mother, 17-year-old Latoya Jackson, of Nashua. Jackson, who was released on $2,000 bail, is charged with false report, endangering the welfare of a child and hindering Meza's apprehension. She is scheduled for a Nov. 30 arraignment, according to Lavoie.
Jackson confessed to police that she and Meza drove their daughter to Mexico Oct. 16, several days after Mariah sustained a severe arm injury while Meza hastily changed her clothing, according to the court documents. X-rays taken at the hospital there confirmed the girl's arm was broken, police said.
Meza told police the Mexican doctors put Mariah's arm in a sling and instructed them to get further treatment when they returned to New Hampshire, the documents say. The couple returned home Nov. 5, at which point they threw away the sling and never sought treatment for the arm, police allege.
Three days later, Meza was changing the baby's diaper when she became fussy and was crying, police wrote. Out of frustration, Meza held the girl's right leg down and twisted her left leg until he heard the bones break, he allegedly confessed. Still, he did not seek medical treatment for his daughter until two days later, according to police.
Mariah was treated at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center this past Wednesday, and the staff alerted the police. She was later transported to Children's Hospital in Boston, where she had surgery and is expected to recover, police said.
"The doctor who checked the child (Thursday) said it was the worst case of child abuse he had ever seen," Goulden said.
On other occasions, Meza shook the baby to stop her crying, he allegedly confessed. When the girl was a little more than one month old, Meza held her tightly against his chest and squeezed her until he heard bones breaking, police say he told them. He put the baby to bed and checked her chest, but did not see any injuries, although he knew he had hurt her, the documents say.
The next week, Meza became frustrated while trying to dress Mariah, so he pulled her arm aggressively through the sleeve and listened as the arm broke, police wrote. Meza told Jackson he accidentally hurt the girl, and they decided not to take her to a hospital because they were scared he would get in trouble, police wrote.
Dr. Steven Birnbaum, who reviewed Mariah's X-rays at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, said he saw three or possibly four fractures in Mariah's left leg at the hip, knee and ankle, according to the court documents. There was one fracture to her right knee, a fracture to the humerus bone in her left arm, another to her right clavicle and approximately eight fractured ribs, the documents say.
Jackson's mother, Joyce Dorval, told police her daughter initially explained the baby was hurt in a car accident, police wrote. Jackson told her mother they would have to make up a story so authorities would not take Mariah away from them, so Jackson later told police a 4-year-old relative had dropped the baby, according to the documents.
Meza stuck with this story when first questioned by police but later admitted to abusing the baby in Jackson's apartment, the documents say.