Man connected to abandoned baby in freezing temperatures sentenced to spend about year in jail

Jon Phelps, The New Hampshire Union Leader, Manchester
·2 min read
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Aug. 14—The man with a woman who police say abandoned her newborn son in a tent on the West Side on Christmas night was sentenced to a little less than a year in jail on Monday.

George Theberge, 45, pleaded guilty in Hillsborough County Superior Court to charges of endangering the welfare of a child, reckless conduct and witness tampering. He also was sentenced on drug charges and a probation violation.

Judge Amy Messer sentenced Theberge to a year in jail on a misdemeanor child-endangerment charge, with credit for 216 days served. He was sentenced to six months on the probation violation.

A sentence of a year in jail on the drug charge was suspended for four years.

In all, he will spend a little less than a year behind bars.

Prosecutor Shawn Sweeney of the Hillsborough County Attorney's Office declined to comment on the sentencing.

"George took responsibility for his actions and is looking to engage in counseling and treatment when released," wrote Joseph J. Prieto, Theberge's attorney, in an email to the Union Leader.

According to a police report, Theberge was with his girlfriend, Alexandra Eckersley, 26, when she gave birth to a son in a tent near the West Side Ice Arena on Christmas night. She told police she did not know she was pregnant.

Eckersley led officers on a frantic search for her son for "nearly an hour," before leading them to the newborn in temperatures that hovered around 15 degrees.

The child, born three months early, was brought to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon. Defense counsel stated in May that the child had recovered and was doing well.

Eckersley's lawyers say she did not disclose where the tent was because she feared Theberge, who told her not to tell police the location of the tent.

Charges against mother

Eckersley is the adopted daughter of former Red Sox pitching great Dennis Eckersley and his second wife, Nancy.

According to a court filing, Alexandra Eckersley told police that Theberge told her the baby had no pulse.

A jury trial on the charges against Eckersley is set to begin in January. At the time of her arrest, Eckersley was facing charges that included reckless conduct; second-degree assault, extreme indifference; falsifying physical evidence; and endangering the welfare of a child.