Craig A. Miller, 45, of Lehi, was charged in Provo's 4th District Court with possession or control of an explosive or incendiary device, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Miller also is charged with child abuse and obstruction of justice, both third-degree felonies punishable by up to five years behind bars.

Bridger was injured July 24 in Lehi, when Miller's pipe-bomb-style firework exploded as the boy was riding his bicycle nearby.

Shrapnel ripped open the left side of the Orem boy's torso and left his leg attached by only "a flap of skin," his mother said. The shrapnel also tore his intestines, cut large blood vessels in his abdomen and shattered the bones in his pelvis and upper left leg.

Prosecutors said Tuesday that "out of deference" to Bridger and his mother, Mindy Carter-Shaw, they decided not to issue a warrant for Miller's arrest.

"I feel there's no reason for him to be in jail," Carter-Shaw said at a brief news conference Tuesday at Primary Children's Medical Center. "It's not going to change my son's outcome or anything like that."

Instead, the court will issue a summons directing Miller to appear in court at a later date.

Meanwhile, Bridger Hunt was recovering Tuesday after undergoing more than 11 hours of surgery at Primary Children's.

Hospital spokeswoman Bonnie Midget said surgery to rebuild the joints and hip of Bridger's left leg and reconstruct his muscles and blood vessels began Monday afternoon and ended around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Doctors said the surgery went as well as could be hoped for.

Eric Scaife, a pediatric surgeon caring for Bridger, said an orthopedic team washed the boy's wounds, removed injured tissue and stabilized his hip and pelvis with several metal plates and screws. Other doctors removed a vein from deep inside his right leg to repair the severed artery in his left leg. Doctors then attempted to repair and reconstruct his damaged thigh muscle.

"He's done well overnight [Monday]," Scaife said. "But this is not the end of the road for him."

Scaife said Hunt will have to overcome some potential challenges. Infection and nerve damage are now two of the main concerns. They were optimistic, though, that Bridger's leg would not be amputated.

"The feeling is there's a real chance that his leg is salvageable and in the future he'll be able to walk on the leg," Scaife said.

However, it was impossible to predict how well he might be able to walk or how functional his leg would be.

When Bridger was brought into the hospital on Thursday he was conscious and talking with medical personnel, but "he was in a lot of trouble when he got here," Scaife said. "He was very close to bleeding to death."

A member of Bridger's family reported during Tuesday's news conference that Bridger was awake and his ventilator was being moved. Midget said Tuesday night that the information turned out to be false.

Bridger is expected to wake and begin breathing on his own within the next few days. He is resting and recovering in the hospital's intensive care unit. He still was listed in critical condition, Midget said.

jbergreen@sltrib.com