OSSIPEE - The mother of the young boy who was severely beaten by her ex-boyfriend in Albany in December 2011 is expected to appear in court for a pre-trial hearing on child endangerment and witness tampering charges.

A pre-trial hearing for the mom, Heather Downs, 33, of Bartlett, is scheduled for Thursday at 8:45 a.m. at Carroll County Superior Court in Ossipee. Downs' ex-boyfriend, Justin Roy, was found guilty last month on charges that he severely beat Downs' 2-year-old son, Strider, and convicted on lesser assault charges against Downs' other sons, an 11-month-old baby and a 7-year-old son. Strider, who has since recovered from life threatening injuries to his abdomen, and his brothers have lived with grandparents after they were removed from Downs' custody of the boys soon after the Dec. 19, 2011 incident.

Downs, who testified at Roy's trial as a state's witness, was charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one count of felony witness tampering. The indictment alleges that Downs told her 7-year-old son not to tell anyone about what happened at the Roy residence before she took the kids and left the house.

The endangerment charges allege Downs' left the boys unattended in a cold car, without heat, in sub-freezing temperatures on Dec. 18, 2011.

lmulkern@newstote.com