Man charged with injuring children on Lenexa playground

A 20-year-old Lenexa man was charged Wednesday with endangering more than a dozen children and injuring three of them during a playground incident Monday.

Johnson County prosecutors charged Javon K. Locket with three counts of aggravated battery for allegedly hurting the children at a playground near his home in the 9200 block of Boehm Drive. Lenexa police said the children, whose ages were not given, suffered cuts, bruises and scratches to their faces, arms and hands.

The mother of one injured child said her 8-year-old son suffered a concussion when he was knocked face-first onto the pavement. He was among a group of children on a daycare field trip, she said.

Prosecutors also charged Locket with assault, aggravated assault, obstructing legal process and 18 counts of child endangerment.

Locket has struggled with mental health issues for most of his adult life, said his attorney, Mark Dupree.

“This is a very sad situation,” Dupree said. “Our goal is to have this resolved in a way that justice is served for all parties.”

Police said they were called to the area Monday on reports that a man was pointing a gun at people and throwing rocks at cars.

Officers arrested Locket after a short foot chase and recovered an Airsoft pistol nearby.

This story was originally published March 25, 2015 at 12:47 PM with the headline "Man charged with injuring children on Lenexa playground."