A boy was given a 50 percent chance of survival after a vicious beating by his father resulted in him rupturing his spleen and left him unconscious. 39-year-old Joshua Dossey has been arrested and charged with second-degree assault in connection to the attack which occurred at his home in Louisville, Kentucky and was booked into jail.

According to Louisville's WLKY-TV, Dossey and his son got into an argument at their residence in the 10,000 block of Ledbury Way on Friday, December 14, and then began exchanging punches. Dossey reportedly told investigators that he grabbed his son and punched him in the face to discipline and restrain him after the boy spat on him and hit him.

The punch left the boy — whose identity has not been revealed because of his status as a minor — unconscious and alerted the grandmother. The grandmother said she called the police upon hearing the commotion and went upstairs to see what was going on.

She told investigators she saw the victim lying on the floor with blood gushing out of his head while Dossey stood over him. The 39-year-old fled the scene and a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was apprehended on Saturday, December 15, and booked into the Metro Corrections Center at around 8:30 pm the same evening. 

After the boy had regained consciousness, he was treated by emergency medical services and transported to the Norton Children's Hospital for further treatment. The police said the boy had suffered a ruptured spleen in the attack and have given him a "50-50 chance" of survival. His current condition is not known.

Dossey is being held on a $250,000 bond and is scheduled appear in arraignment court on the morning of December 17. The Child Protection Branch (CPB) of the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services is said to be now investigating the case.

This is the second incident in the past few weeks where a father has been arrested in Louisville for endangering their child. WDRB reported that 25-year-old Dwayne Holt was arrested last month after he drove while drunk with his two-year-old son in the back seat.

An arrest report states that police initially responded to the scene on a report of a "person down inside a vehicle" after the caller said he saw Holt unresponsive in the car with his son crying in the back seat. When emergency workers arrived, Holt was found to have slurred speech and smelled of alcohol, with authorities charging him with first-degree wanton endangerment and DUI.