A 32-year-old Austin man faces a felony charge for allegedly throwing a child against a wall and breaking his arm because he was talking while the man was watching TV.

Richard Martin Souhrada pleaded not guilty in Mower County District Court Monday to third-degree assault-substantial bodily harm.

According to court records, Mower County Human Services approached law enforcement after a school nurse treated a 6-year-old boy who complained he couldn’t use his right arm because he had pain in his wrist and trouble straightening his elbow.

He told police and a social worker that Souhrada threw him against a wall because he was “talking too much” while Souhrada was watching TV on Feb. 24.

He told the child to “shut up” but the child kept talking, so he took him by the shirt and legs and threw him against a wall.

The child reported other punishments — being sent to a dark basement, being made to stand outside on the porch and withholding food — by Souhrada.

The child was taken to Mayo Clinic Health System in Austin, where he was found to have a fractured bone in his forearm, which a doctor classified as “substantial bodily harm.”

Souhrada was arrested Feb. 28 after Mayo Clinic Health System called police asking for assistance in escorting him from the property.

He is scheduled for a July 24 trial.