SBS: Washington: Mark Stanger loses second child, faces second manslaugher charge

By K.C. Mehaffey: November 30, 2011

OKANOGAN — An Okanogan man who was acquitted of shaking his six-month-old daughter to death 11 years ago is now charged with letting his nine-month-old son drown in a bathtub this summer.
Mark A. Stanger, 34, was charged in Okanogan County Superior Court Nov. 18 with first-degree manslaughter. Prosecutors say he recklessly caused the death of his son, Marcel, who was flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center on July 17 after nearly drowning in the family’s bathtub at 237 Spruce St.
Marcel died at the Spokane hospital a month later.
A preliminary autopsy found that Marcel died of asphyxia due to partial drowning, according to a report by Okanogan County Sheriff’s detective Debbie Behymer, filed with the charges.
According to that report:
Stanger told deputies that he put his son in the tub in about 6 inches of water at about 3:30 p.m. He then yelled up to his Marcel’s mother, Lanni — who was upstairs and on medications due to a vehicle accident — that Marcel was in the tub and she needed to take care of him. He told deputies he went into the living room to watch television, and fell asleep. When Lanni woke him up about 15 or 20 minutes later asking where Marcel was, he ran to the bathroom to find him limp, lying on his back in the water. When deputies asked why there was no water in the tub, he told them that he had drained it after finding Marcel.
The preliminary autopsy found no physical injuries, the report said.
The charges come 13 years after Stanger lost a baby girl, Mercedes Chapa, who was also flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane following injuries she received while under Stanger’s care.
He told authorities that his daughter fell off their bed while he was cleaning their Riverside apartment. He was later charged with first-degree manslaughter after the Spokane County medical examiner found the baby died of shaken infant syndrome.
But an Okanogan County jury found him not guilty in December 2000. Stanger’s Spokane attorney, Bevan Maxey, said at the time that the jury told him there was insufficient proof to convict Stanger of either first- or second-degree manslaughter.
“The evidence indicated he was a good father, a loving father,” Maxey told The Wenatchee World after the verdict, adding “One can only imagine what it would feel like to lose a child, to be blamed for it, and then to face the potential of getting wrongfully prosecuted.”
K.C. Mehaffey: 997-2512
mehaffey@wenatcheeworld.com
http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2011/nov/30/okanogan-man-loses-second-child-faces-second/

SBS: Washington State: Miguel Garza charged

Feb. 15, 2011 : Kristin M. Kraemer,

PASCO — A Pasco father has been charged with shaking his 3-month-old daughter so severely that the baby may have permanent vision loss and other long-term damage.
Miguel Garza II, 27, initially claimed the girl stopped breathing after choking on milk, then told doctors he accidentally dropped a bottle on her face and she had gone limp, according to court documents.
But doctors who examined the nearly comatose baby in October said her brain injury was the result of "inflicted head trauma," or shaken baby syndrome. 
The baby survived and reportedly is living with a foster parent while continuing treatment, in-cluding a feeding tube surgically inserted into her stomach.

Garza is charged in Benton County Superior Court with first-degree assault of a child. He has been out of custody while Kennewick police investigated, and has been sent a letter to appear in court Feb. 24 to enter a plea.
His is one of two cases filed in Benton County in the last week involving allegations of significant child abuse.
Nathaniel Duane Smith, 33, is expected in court Thursday on charges that over the past few years he has punished a pre-teen girl in his household by forcing her to stay awake for 24 hours, slammed her against walls and into the ground and punched her in the face. The girl's injuries reportedly included bruises, black eyes and a broken arm.
Smith, of Kennewick, is in the Benton County jail on $10,000 bail for second-degree assault of a child, along with a failure to comply.
In Garza's case, police and paramedics were called to a Kennewick home Oct. 19 for reports of a baby not breathing. Garza was alone with the baby.
Officer Drew Sneyd was the first to arrive and "administered multiple palm strikes to the baby's back and she then began making gurgling noises," Deputy Prosecutor Kristin McRoberts wrote in the court documents.
Garza told Sneyd he had given the baby a bottle while she was lying on the bed and she started choking. The girl's mother later told police her daughter had been born several weeks premature but otherwise had been healthy.
At Kennewick General Hospital, Garza allegedly told a doctor his daughter went limp after he accidentally dropped a bottle on her face, and suggested that was why her lips were swollen. The doctor, however, told police the injuries were not consistent with that explanation.
The baby was flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane after tests revealed she had bleeding on the brain.
Kennewick police again talked to Garza. In a recorded statement, he said he had forgotten to warm up the milk so the baby began crying while he was feeding her. He said he removed the bottle from her mouth to warm it up and it dropped on her face.
He said he warmed the bottle in the kitchen and returned to the bedroom to find the baby still crying.
Garza "stated that he put the bottle in the baby's mouth, and while she was drinking, she continued crying and then started to choke," documents said. "He patted her back and she started vomiting milk out of her mouth and nose. She then went completely limp and he shook her for a second to see if she was OK."
Garza said he then called 911.
Doctors who examined the baby in Spokane diagnosed her with a head injury, noted her swollen lips and bruising on her right eye and put her on a ventilator. An ophthalmologist found the eye "extremely worrisome because the baby was at risk for permanent limitation of vision and retinal scarring," court documents said.
Another doctor described her brain injury as "widespread and severe" and was concerned she might not survive.
The baby was moved to Oregon Health and Science University Hospital in Portland on Nov. 4, where doctors confirmed bleeding on her brain and in her retinas, and discovered she had an inflamed trachea and seizures. After surgery on her eyes, the baby was described as having a poor visual prognosis. A neurosurgeon also inserted a shunt into the baby's brain.
She was released to a foster parent Nov. 12, documents said.
Detectives repeatedly interviewed Garza. He allegedly said he may have shaken his daughter for as long as 10 seconds, and described holding her head with the bottle in her mouth so she couldn't turn away.
Garza allowed investigators to record a video while he re-enacted his story. The video was shown to one of the Spokane doctors who worked on the baby, and the doctor said Garza's actions as he claimed could not have caused the brain injury, documents said. The doctor noted there was no damage to the little girl's lung as would be expected if she had choked on milk.
In Smith's case, Kennewick officers went to his South Arthur Place home Feb. 4 to do a welfare check on the pre-teen girl. It is not clear what her relationship is to Smith.
Police found her with two black eyes, a swollen face, scratches on her neck and bruises on her arms and elbows, court documents said. Officers questioned her and learned Smith allegedly had disciplined her the previous night "by forcing her to stay awake for 24 hours. Sleep deprivation is a common form of punishment for her."
The girl told police she was forced to clean the house, and when she fell asleep on the couch, Smith woke her up by pulling on her shirt and slamming her back on the couch.
Prosecutors also allege Smith trashed the girl's room and made her clean it up. When she was fixing the bed frame, he slammed the boxspring into her spine, pushed her up against the wall and punched and slapped her on the face multiple times, Deputy Prosecutor Anita Petra wrote in court documents.
"Throughout her interview, she appeared to be very frightened of (Smith) and began crying during description of the various incidents," Petra wrote.
The girl recounted stories of being punished in the backyard and thrown to the ground, one time breaking her arm in 2009 when she tried to break her fall. She said Smith didn't believe her arm was broken and made her get into a pushup position but she was unable to, court documents said.
The girl said she went to a hospital and told the doctor she had hurt it playing football with her brother, documents said. Police got copies of the medical reports confirming her story.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2011/02/15/1868451/pasco-man-accused-of-shaking-infant.html#storylink=mirelated#ixzz1Omhjty5X

SBS: Washington: Miguel Garza charged

Mar. 12, 2011
Kristin M. Kraemer,
KENNEWICK — A Pasco father pleaded innocent this week to allegations he severely shook his 3-month-old daughter, likely causing permanent vision loss and other long-term damage.

Miguel Garza II, 27, faces trial June 6 in Benton County Superior Court for first-degree assault of a child.
The charge was filed in early February, but his plea was postponed while Garza hired lawyer Shelley Ajax.
It stems from an Oct. 19 call to a Kennewick home for a baby not breathing.
Garza was alone with his daughter and claimed she was lying on the bed drinking milk from a bottle when she started choking and stopped breathing. He later told police and doctors that he accidentally dropped a bottle on her face and she had gone limp, and that he “shook her for a second to see if she was OK,” according to court documents.
However, the doctors who examined the almost comatose baby after the incident told police the injuries were not consistent with Garza’s explanation. The doctors said her brain injury was the result of “inflicted head trauma,” or shaken baby syndrome, documents said.
The infant initially was treated at Kennewick General Hospital, then flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, where tests revealed she had bleeding on the brain. She was moved to Oregon Health and Science University Hospital in Portland on Nov. 4, where she underwent surgery on her eyes and to have a shunt inserted into her brain.
The baby survived and was released to a foster parent Nov. 12. She had a feeding tube surgically inserted into her stomach and is continuing treatment for her injuries, prosecutors said in court documents.
While the case is pending, Garza is ordered to have no contact with his daughter.

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2011/03/12/1405112/pasco-father-pleads-innocent-to.html#ixzz1GrTdGleV

SBS: Washington State: Miguel Garza charged

 

 

Kristin M. Kraemer, Herald staff writer : 02/15/11

PASCO — A Pasco father has been charged with shaking his 3-month-old daughter so severely that the baby may have permanent vision loss and other long-term damage.

Miguel Garza II, 27, initially claimed the girl stopped breathing after choking on milk, then told doctors he accidentally dropped a bottle on her face and she had gone limp, according to court documents.
But doctors who examined the nearly comatose baby in October said her brain injury was the result of "inflicted head trauma," or shaken baby syndrome.
The baby survived and reportedly is living with a foster parent while continuing treatment, including a feeding tube surgically inserted into her stomach.
Garza is charged in Benton County Superior Court with first-degree assault of a child. He has been out of custody while Kennewick police investigated, and has been sent a letter to appear in court Feb. 24 to enter a plea.
His is one of two cases filed in Benton County in the last week involving allegations of significant child abuse.
In Garza's case, police and paramedics were called to a Kennewick home Oct. 19 for reports of a baby not breathing. Garza was alone with the baby.
Officer Drew Sneyd was the first to arrive and "administered multiple palm strikes to the baby's back and she then began making gurgling noises," Deputy Prosecutor Kristin McRoberts wrote in the court documents.
Garza told Sneyd he had given the baby a bottle while she was lying on the bed and she started choking. The girl's mother later told police her daughter had been born several weeks premature but otherwise had been healthy.
At Kennewick General Hospital, Garza allegedly told a doctor his daughter went limp after he accidentally dropped a bottle on her face, and suggested that was why her lips were swollen. The doctor, however, told police the injuries were not consistent with that explanation.
The baby was flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane after tests revealed she had bleeding on the brain.
Kennewick police again talked to Garza. In a recorded statement, he said he had forgotten to warm up the milk so the baby began crying while he was feeding her. He said he removed the bottle from her mouth to warm it up and it dropped on her face.
He said he warmed the bottle in the kitchen and returned to the bedroom to find the baby still crying.
Garza "stated that he put the bottle in the baby's mouth, and while she was drinking, she continued crying and then started to choke," documents said. "He patted her back and she started vomiting milk out of her mouth and nose. She then went completely limp and he shook her for a second to see if she was OK."
Garza said he then called 911.
Doctors who examined the baby in Spokane diagnosed her with a head injury, noted her swollen lips and bruising on her right eye and put her on a ventilator. An ophthalmologist found the eye "extremely worrisome because the baby was at risk for permanent limitation of vision and retinal scarring," court documents said.
Another doctor described her brain injury as "widespread and severe" and was concerned she might not survive.
The baby was moved to Oregon Health and Science University Hospital in Portland on Nov. 4, where doctors confirmed bleeding on her brain and in her retinas, and discovered she had an inflamed trachea and seizures. After surgery on her eyes, the baby was described as having a poor visual prognosis. A neurosurgeon also inserted a shunt into the baby's brain.
She was released to a foster parent Nov. 12, documents said.
Detectives repeatedly interviewed Garza. He allegedly said he may have shaken his daughter for as long as 10 seconds, and described holding her head with the bottle in her mouth so she couldn't turn away.
Garza allowed investigators to record a video while he re-enacted his story. The video was shown to one of the Spokane doctors who worked on the baby, and the doctor said Garza's actions as he claimed could not have caused the brain injury, documents said. The doctor noted there was no damage to the little girl's lung as would be expected if she had choked on milk.
 http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/02/15/1545374/pasco-man-accused-of-shaking-infant.html#ixzz1EgvjbEWo

SBS: WASHINGTON: Scott Daniel Sparks

February 1, 2011 Tony Lystra

The five-year-old brother of a baby hospitalized last week with critical injuries told investigators he saw his father throw the 3-month-old across the living room twice, according to a police report.

Scott Daniel Sparks, 30, of Kelso shook the baby before throwing him, the report said. The baby landed atop a pile of toy tractors. In another instance, investigators believe, the 5-year-old boy was struck by the flying infant after his father had thrown him.
The 3-month-old boy, who had been admitted to Legacy Emmanuel Hospital in Portland in critical condition two weeks ago, is expected to survive, but it's uncertain what lasting effect his injuries may have on his development, Kelso Police Chief Andrew Hamilton said Tuesday.
The baby's parents insisted that he was never shaken or abused, the report said.
A Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge found probable cause Monday to charge Sparks, the boys' father, with first-degree assault of a child. He was arrested Friday and remains in the Cowlitz County Jail, where he is being held on $100,000 bail.
Both boys are in protective custody, the report said.
The baby, who was born to Sparks and his wife, Dusty Childress, at St. John Medical Center in October, suffered torn brain tissue, four fractured ribs, a fractured leg bone and hemorrhaging in his eyes, the police report said. Kelso police described the injuries last week as potentially "life-threatening" and consistent with "shaken baby syndrome."
Doctors told police that tests revealed bleeding on both sides of the baby's brain. The bleeding took place on different occasions, indicating more than one episode of abuse, doctors said. The doctors also told investigators some of the abuse could have happened as much as one or two months ago.
Sparks told police the baby "has never fallen, has never been hit with anything and has never been shaken," according to the police report.
The baby, he said, was having episodes of "non-stop crying" and the child would stiffen his limbs, then quiet down, the report said. Sparks said he thought the episodes might be seizures.
Sparks told police he called 911 on Jan. 17 because the baby appeared to stop breathing after one of these episodes. The baby was taken to St. John, and his antacid medication was increased, Sparks told investigators. Sparks said additional tests revealed the injuries when he and his wife inquired about causes for the baby's behavior.
The 5-year-old told authorities his mother was present at the time of the abuse and that she had cried.
When investigators asked how the baby's ribs were broken, Childress suggested her 5-year-old son jumped over a couch and landed on the baby's chest, the report said.
Investigators also said that, before the interview, Childress told her 5-year-old son "not to talk about his daddy when he was interviewed." Police said Childress was "using her influence as a mother to have (her son) withhold information concerning this investigation" and that she was "clearly tampering with a witness."
The witness tampering matter has not yet been referred to prosecutors, Cowlitz County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Michelle Shaffer said Tuesday.
Court documents said Sparks is unemployed and was previously convicted of a felony drug violation.
http://tdn.com/news/local/article_fb378082-2e82-11e0-9e8c-001cc4c03286.html

SIDS: Washington: Mother Says Nojo Original Baby Sling Killed Her Daughter

By JUNE WILLIAMS 

TACOMA (CN) - A mother claims the poorly designed Nojo Original Baby Sling suffocated her 3-month old daughter. The grieving mom says Crown Crafts Infant Products dba Noel Johanna failed to warn consumers not to use the sling with infants younger than 4 months old, as it can cause positional asphyxiation.
     "The 'Nojo - The Original Baby Sling' is unreasonably dangerous as designed and can result in suffocation/asphyxiation because babies are contained entirely within the pouch of a sling with their face, including nose and mouth, pressed against the adult's body, impeding the airway," according to the federal complaint. "The sling can also place the infant in a 'C' position, or a chin-to-chest position, which can also impede the airway. When an infant is in the chin-to-chest position, suffocation and death can occur within minutes."
     Ann Heneghan says she was carrying her daughter in the sling while shopping and in less than 30 minutes, "she observed that her 3-month-old otherwise healthy baby was limp, pale, and not breathing. She observed blood-tinged mucous coming from Cathleen's nostril," the complaint states.
     "Ms. Heneghan began shouting for someone to call 9-1-1 and to help her with her baby. She carried Cathleen back into the store and commenced CPR with the assistance of a bystander. EMS units arrived within three (3) minutes and took over resuscitation efforts. Cathleen's heartbeat and breathing was restored and she was transported by ambulance to Children's Mary Bridge Hospital in Tacoma, Washington.
     "Cathleen was hospitalized in the pediatric intensive care unit for four days where she remained unresponsive and in a coma. According to medical records, evaluation of Cathleen's condition revealed that she was brain dead and had developed severe cerebral edema, seizures, aspiration pneumonitis, and an upper GI bleed, all associated with diffuse anoxic and ischemic injury. She was also found to have no cranial nerve function and no demonstrated respiratory efforts. Cathleen remained on advanced life support systems during the course of her hospitalization.
     "On October 27, 2004, Ms. Heneghan made the difficult decision to remove Cathleen from artificial life support. Cathleen died in her mother's arms at 11:50 a.m. that day."
     Heneghan says she was originally told that her daughter had died from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
     But "On March 12, 2010, Ms. Heneghan was contacted by the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) and was told that they were going to be issuing a warning regarding the dangers associated with the type of sling that Cathleen died in. Ms. Heneghan contacted the medical examiner who had conducted the original investigation and discovered for the first time that Cathleen's death was the result of positional asphyxiation - not Sudden Infant Death Syndrome as she had been told previously," the complaint states.
     "On March 12, 2010 the CPSC released a warning stating that 'infant slings can pose two different types of suffocation hazards to babies. In the first few months of life, babies cannot control their heads because of weak neck muscles. The sling's fabric can press against an infant's nose and mouth, blocking the baby's breathing and rapidly suffocating a baby within a minute or two. Additionally, where a sling keeps the infant in a curled position bending the chin towards the chest, the airways can be restricted, limiting the oxygen supply. The baby will not be able to cry for help and can slowly suffocate,'" according to the complaint.
     "Subsequent investigation revealed that the 'Nojo - The Original Baby Sling' is a dangerous sling because it allows babies to retreat into a curved/'C' shaped position where his/her head can be pressed against the mother's body causing positional asphyxiation. Investigation also revealed that the product did not contain any warnings or instructions telling Ms. Heneghan how to use the sling safely, that she should not use this type of sling with infants under four months old, and that the baby should be worn tight to the mother's body with the head out of the sling at all times. The dangers due to the design and lack of warnings associated with the 'Nojo - The Original Baby Sling' were unknown to Ms. Heneghan and were the result of Cathleen Delia Ross' tragic and unnecessary death," the complaint states
http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/12/22/32804.htm

SBS: Ole Bakken; Washington

By Brad Wood

A Remarkable Thanksgiving Story

Monday, November 22 2010

When he came into the world six years ago, Ole Bakken, as he is now named, was a normal 8-pound-10-ounce boy. A healthy baby born to young parents; a life filled with promise. But by best estimates, Ole’s perfect, promise-filled world lasted a mere three weeks. That’s when his parents noticed his body had stiffened and his head had locked into a thrown-back position. They took him to the small hospital in rural Washington, but any signs of trouble were gone by the time a doctor examined him. A mystery ailment, or so it seemed. Then, Ole started having seizures. This time, doctors at that same small hospital recognized immediately what was wrong, and with heavy hearts, sent Ole to Seattle Children’s Hospital. Doctors there confirmed the diagnosis: bilateral hemorrhaging of the brain and bilateral retinal hemorrhaging. In terms we know: shaken baby syndrome. Blind at 2 months old, Ole also had a broken leg, a left arm he could not use, and eight broken ribs in the process of healing. Doctors think Ole’s ribs were broken before that first inconclusive doctor visit. Ole’s family denied any abuse. No one was prosecuted. Broken, and battered, 2-month-old Ole endured two surgeries over the next weeks. One of the procedures placed a shunt in his head to allow blood to drain into his stomach; a new permanency in a life not yet lived. Calling All Angels For Ole, the hope of normal was all but gone. His potentially bright future was now dimmed by the clouds of severe and seemingly insurmountable injuries. Doctors were unsure if he would even survive. The only certainty: Ole couldn’t return to his parents. A judge’s ruling ensured that. The battered baby needed a new home. He also needed an angel. And as luck would have it, he didn’t get one—he got two. A week before Ole’s release from the hospital, Collette Bakken’s phone rang. A little boy needed big help. Collette, a labor and delivery nurse, was one of the first people to meet Ole when she tended to him in the hospital nursery. “I wasn’t surprised when I got the call,” she said. “We all knew what had happened to him.” Collette and her husband, Lyle, were used to taking care of kids in need. Collette, as a nurse. Lyle, as security officer with the Washington State Detention Department, handling juvenile delinquents. They were veteran foster parents who had cared for more than 50 kids. And, between the two of them, they had nine children of their own. Three months into an already hard life, Ole’s fate had turned to fortune. Lyle and Collette took Ole in, knowing the overwhelming challenges they were likely to face, and understanding those challenges could be short-lived. “We were told he may not survive,” Lyle said. If Ole managed to survive, odds were overwhelming that challenges would be enormous. “We were told he would probably be profoundly retarded and that he would not speak or walk due to brain atrophy,” Collette said. But nothing could stand in the way of their fostering the little boy with so much need. A Miracle Begins From the very moment they met Ole, that second time, Collette and Lyle cared for him as if he were one of their own. Collette kept Ole moving—exercising his arms and legs and manipulating his fingers. Ole offered little, if any, feedback. But Collette believed the movement and stimulation could help rewire his synapses. With steadfast love and determination, Ole’s angels were working to rebuild him from the outside in. With little to encourage them, they worked and prayed unwaveringly, month after month. Then, in one defining moment, their prayers were answered. Ole suddenly, miraculously, rolled over. “From then, we were on our way,” said Collette. Ole then underwent speech therapy, physical therapy and overcame a swallowing disorder. more follows in this remarkable story

http://www.ioanthem.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=812&Itemid=1