SBS: Ohio: Coroner: Infant Girl Colleen Dobbins' Death a Homicide

COLUMBUS -- A 5-month-old baby girl's death is ruled a homicide by the
Franklin County Coroner's Office, ABC6/FOX28 News' Carol Luper reports Tuesday.
Colleen Dobbins died in March, two days after medics rushed her from her babysitter's home and to a hospital for medical attention. Tests show she was a victim of shaken baby syndrome.
Her father is an assistant lacrosse coach David Dobbins at Ohio State University.  In April, the team honored the Dobbins' family for donating the baby's organs. They wore her initials on their uniforms and featured green bands representing the cause of organ donation.
Police had not filed charges regarding the case as of Tuesday; however, they've said the infant was hurt by the babysitter.
Sgt. Steven Little, of the Columbus Division of Police Homicide Squad, "The child was immediately diagnosed as having severe retinal hemorrhage, which is consistent with shaken baby [syndrome]."
According to the coroner's autopsy report, little Colleen was crying and her care-giver was bouncing the child on the knee. At one point, Colleen became unresponsive.
The coroner ruled the death the end result of traumatic brain injury and homicidal in nature.
ABC6/FOX28 News is not releasing the babysitter's name because no charges have been filed.
"We'll take the package down to the prosecutor's officer for review and possible indictment of the suspect in question for a murder charge."

http://www.abc6onyourside.com/shared/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wsyx_vid_10885.shtml

SIDS: A parent's account of her experience

In spite of much ongoing research, sudden infant death syndrome remains a mystery. There are many theories, but as yet, no conclusive explanation. In 1994, SIDS took the lives of 4,073 babies in the United States and 269 in Canada. From 1995 to 2010 SIDS took the lives of 166,000 babies in the United States and 12,000 in Canada.
Most who fall victim to this syndrome die between the second and the fourth month of life. The babies are happy and healthy when tucked into their cribs in the evening. But when the parents look in on them the next morning, they find them dead.
What makes the situation even more difficult for parents after a sudden infant death is that the police are frequently called to investigate whether the baby had been neglected or abused. A coroner’s examination may be ordered. The majority of officials behave with tact and respect, but not all of them. The overzealous police officer that came to my home on April 24^th, 2008 was not so respectful and tried to blame me for my daughter’s death. All I can remember is yelling at him and telling him to get the hell out of my house.
At 8am my daughter was alive and well. She was still asleep and so was my 5-year-old son so I went back to bed. I was awakened by a phone call from my mom at 11:11am and thought it was strange that Zenzi (that is my daughter’s name) had not woken me up. As I walked down the hallway I had a horrible feeling and knew something was wrong. She was laying on her back slightly titled to the left with the blanket a little over her face. I moved it and she was white as could be. There was blood coming out of her nose, some out of her mouth, and the left side of her face looked horrible because of where the blood had settled in and her left eye was slightly opened while her right eye was closed. It was as if she was awake, fell asleep, and just stopped breathing. Which yes that is what happened. But to this very day I replay that morning wondering what I could of did differently. My daughter had just turned 4 months old.
Parents question themselves mercilessly for possible causes of their child’s death, for what they might have done wrong. Even an outside confirmation that parent’s aren’t at fault doesn’t prevent these feelings. You may need support to deal with your guilt feelings rationally –perhaps through discussion with others who have had the same experience, by attending a support group or by seeking counseling.
Children who die of SIDS are torn out of life in the midst of the baby’s and parents’ “honeymoon” together. An exciting, joyful time has just begun, when the baby starts to make contact with her surroundings, imitates her parents and smiles at them. Love and bonding have grown deeply. On the other hand, memories of the baby’s short life span remain –memories that no one can ever take away, and this can help the grief process eventually.
I did talk to the coroner who did the autopsy on my daughter and he told me it was SIDS and there was nothing I could have done to prevent her death. They say it’s like a light turning on and off and with SIDS babies their “switch” is defective and just stops working and never turns on again. Or in other words it fails to tell them to breath. Some studies are saying it could be caused by a defective brain stem that is causing them to just stop breathing. Yet there are still no answers to the cause of SIDS or even a cure.
Since the 1990s there have been studies that say you should put your baby to sleep on their back, don’t have bumpers in the cribs, pillows, stuffed animals, or thick blankets that could cause suffocation. You should give them a pacifier at nap time and bed time. Do not smoke during pregnancy or around a baby or let anyone who smokes hold the baby while they smell of cigarette smoke. Also they say to be careful of overheating your infant. But in recent years they have found even if you do all of these things that a seemingly normal; healthy baby will still fall victim to SIDS.
My daughter was taken from us due to SIDS and she had no risk of SIDS. She was not underweight at birth. Actually she was a healthy 8lbs baby girl born at 37 weeks gestation. At her passing she weighed 27lbs and was 24 inches long. By no means was she a tiny baby. She slept with a pacifier. She did just fall asleep and never woke up. Losing a child to SIDS is beyond devastating because all the parents do is blame themselves and some blame each other.

http://hubpages.com/hub/SIDS-Sudden-Infant-Death-SyndromeMyChild

SBS: Pennsylvania: 10 year old found responsible for death of Heath Ryder at day care

Myles Snyder
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa.
A jury seated to hear testimony in a coroner's inquest has found a 10-year-old girl and her babysitter criminally responsible for the death of an infant at a Shippensburg home last summer.

The findings came after two days of emotional testimony at Franklin County Coroner Jeffrey Conner's inquest into the death of 10-month-old Heath Ryder, who died at Penn State Hershey Medical Center four days after suffering injuries July 29 at the home day care operated by Dottie Bowers.

Jurors recommended a charge of involuntary manslaughter against Bowers and a charge of third-degree murder against the 10-year-old, who is accused of shaking and tossing the baby.

Dr. Mark Dias, a pediatric neurosurgeon who treated Heath at Penn State Hershey, testified Friday that the infant suffered extremely traumatic brain injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

"I don't see how this could be accidental," Dias said. "This had to have been violent; significant, violent trauma."

Dias said that based on the evidence, he concluded that Heath's injuries were caused by the 10-year-old.

A seven-year-old girl who attended the home day care testified Thursday that she witnessed the 10-year-old shake Heath and throw him in a crib. She said she felt his stomach and his nose and noticed that "nothing was moving."

A state police criminal investigator later testified that the girl's story had changed since he interviewed her.

The 10-year-old was called as a witness Thursday, but chose to remain silent.

Dias added that there wasn't much doctors could do once Health arrived at the hospital, but said his injuries might have been treatable had Bowers called 911 when she found him unresponsive. Police testified yesterday that Bowers never made the call for help.

Heath's mother, Sherry Ryder, told jurors that she made the emergency call after Bowers ignored her pleas. She said she was on her way home from work when Bowers phoned to say Heath would not wake up and was breathing abnormally. She said she rushed to the home to find her son limp and lifeless, and called 911 while she performed CPR.

Bowers was called before the jury Friday, but she also exercised her Fifth Amendment right to not testify.

The findings of the jury are non-binding. Prosecutors may decide or decline to pursue the charges.

"I can change the opinion of the jury," Conner said. "I have the right to give my own and once I give the decision to the district attorney, he can still give his own decisions. There is nothing binding about this. This is to gather more information and to gather the opinion of some jurors, so this is not at all from law enforcement."

Heath's family cried as the jury announced its findings and later said they were happy with the verdicts.

"I think it's the beginning," Cliff Swartz said. "It will be the first step in the beginning of the healing process."

http://www.abc27.com/story/14456857/jury-finds-babysitter-and-girl-10-criminally-responsible-for-babys-death

SBS: Burridge, Plymouth England

dominic jeff
THE mother of an eight-week-old baby murdered by his dad has spoken of her four-year nightmare battle to bury her son.
The remains of baby Rees Burridge were finally released yesterday by one of the country's top judges using an obscure 130-year-old law.
Informed that she could at last bury his remains, Rees' mum Donna Glynn said: "Finally. It's been four years and I've still not been able to lay my son to rest, and believe me, I've tried every avenue. It's been a mum's worse nightmare.
"He was a beautiful little boy who didn't deserve any of this. Hopefully, he can now finally be laid to rest. I can give him the funeral he deserves, which is all I can do for him now, poor little thing."
Michael Burridge, 30 (pictured above), is serving life for murdering baby Rees at his Tavistock home in 2006.
He was convicted following a trial at Plymouth Crown Court in March 2008, but the case did not end there; he launched a Court of Appeal bid to clear his name, meaning Rees' body lay unburied.
Yesterday, in a preliminary hearing prior to the appeal, Lord Justice Leveson ordered the baby's body be released to his family for burial.
Using laws drawn up in the 19th century — which the appeal judge had not realised applied to him — he exercised his power as a 'de facto coroner' to order the release.
Describing the situation as 'terrible', the judge made an order under the Coroners Act 1887 to allow the 'corporeal remains' to be buried.
Ms Glynn, aged 38 and still living in Tavistock with her daughter, said: "I'd tried everything to get my son released, even going to the local MP, but we've just hit brick walls all the time. It's been terrible — the worst thing you can ever go through."
Prosecutors at Burridge's trial said he killed Rees while his wife was out shopping in September 2006 by fracturing his ribs and shaking him. The jury heard expert evidence on 'shaken baby syndrome' but Burridge, a former soldier who later worked as a a milkman and window-cleaner, has steadfastly protested his innocence.
Among the issues at the appeal will be the suggestion that Rees may have suffered from congenital bone and vitamin deficiencies which made him vulnerable.
The judge said it was for Burridge's lawyers to present evidence which undermined the safety of his conviction.
http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/news/LAY-BABY-REST/article-2681839-detail/article.html

SIDS: New Zealand

Sandra Conchie |

17th September 2010

Sudden unexpected death is extremely rare for babies protected by the safety formula. Photo: File.

The tragic deaths of two Tauranga babies have prompted the coroner to warn parents of the risk of sharing a bed with their infant.

The inquests of the 4-month-old babies, who died within a month of each other last year, were held at Tauranga yesterday.

The names of the babies and their parents were suppressed.

Coroner Dr Wallace Bain said it was important to get the warning out about the risks of bed-sharing.

In the first case, the baby had been sleeping between its teenage mother and the mother's younger sibling.

But when the mother woke in the morning, her son was not breathing. She immediately started CPR and an ambulance was called, but the baby could not be saved.

The court heard evidence that the baby had been wheezing, and only a month earlier had spent a few days in hospital being treated for a respiratory virus.

The pathologist said the post-mortem findings were consistent with an "asphyxial mode of death", and consistent with consideration of a sudden infant death syndrome.

The baby's parents were not present in court.

In the second case, the baby's father had placed his son into his wife's arms while she was lying in bed.

All three went to sleep.

But when the mother woke at 4am, she found her baby lying face up between her and her husband. He was not breathing, was cold to the touch, and had no pulse.

She immediately started CPR and an ambulance was called.

The pathologist who performed the post-mortem examination said the baby's death was consistent with asphyxia.

The baby's mother told the coroner that sleeping with her baby was a cultural practice.

But she had since had another child, and her new baby slept in its own cot with a monitor.

The coroner applauded that decision, and said it was important to tell other parents about the need for separate, safe sleeping places for little babies. The mother, who attended with the baby's father, agreed.

It's not the first time the risks of parents bed-sharing with babies has been highlighted.

Dr Bain said he and the Wellington coroner dealt with at least a dozen similar co-sleeping deaths in 2008, and there continued to be cases all around the country.

Dr Bain reserved his decision in relation to the cause of death of both infants.

The issue of safe sleeping practices has also been raised by health officials in Christchurch following the destructive earthquake two weeks ago.

Dr Pat Tuohy, Ministry of Health chief adviser child and youth health, said many babies are sleeping in makeshift beds away from their own homes - and this meant some might be placed to sleep in dangerous places. Dr Tuohy said there were three things parents and caregivers should remember wherever and whenever baby sleeps.

"They should be face-up, face-clear and smoke-free."

The doctor also warned parents who were tired, or had consumed alcohol, not to share a bed with their baby, because it put the baby at high risk of being suffocated.

"Sudden unexpected death is extremely rare for babies protected by this safety formula."

 

SAFETY FORMULA
The Ministry of Health is recommending its "Safety formula" to reduce the chances of babies dying in their sleep:

FACE UP: Babies should sleep on their back. In this position it's easier for them to breathe and allows their strong gag and swallow reflexes to protect them if they spill. A clear face protects babies from suffocation.

FACE CLEAR: Babies need to be in a safe place, and shouldn't sleep on a couch or a bed with bedding or pillows that could block breathing.

SMOKE-FREE: All smoking harms babies, especially in pregnancy. Smoking takes oxygen and weakens vital systems as babies develop. When born, babies need extra protection, especially those born early.

Risks of sharing a bed with your baby 

Plunket advises parents on its website that bed-sharing increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). If a parent wants to share a bed with their baby, it was important to:
* Have a smoke free pregnancy and home.
* Make sure that your baby sleeps on its back.
* Ensure that the adults in the bed have not been using alcohol or drugs, or are particularly tired.
Plunket also advises ensuring that bedding does not cover the baby's face or bed, the baby can't become wedged between or under others, and the baby doesn't get too heated or cold.
The risks of bed sharing are greater for premature and low birth weight babies and those who have been exposed to smoke, Plunket says.
"Most babies who die of SIDS share a bed with others, and have been exposed to smoke during pregnancy and after birth."
La Leche League New Zealand spokeswoman Lisa Manning said many New Zealand parents from different cultural backgrounds shared sleep with their babies, for all or part of the night.
"Rather than condemning what is an important strategy used by some to make parenting easier and more pleasurable, accurate messages on how to safely share sleep and when to avoid it need to be given."
Ms Manning said British research by Helen Ball had found that mothers who slept next to their breastfed babies were sensitive to their baby's presence during the night.
They maintained a safe sleeping position which protected the baby's from over-lying. 

 

http://www.bayofplentytimes.co.nz/local/news/double-tragedy-sparks-warning-from-coroner/3922981/

SBS: Hospital defends its accusatory stance toward parents when child was brought in.

 Anthony Gottschlich

October 10, 2006

SUGARCREEK TWP., Montgomery County — As she cradled her infant son in the Intensive Care Unit at Children’s Medical Center of Dayton, Amber Shawen sat mystified at the 2-month-old’s sudden death.
Then hospital staff members approached her and her husband, Preston, with the unthinkable.

Amber and Preston Shawen of Sugarcreek Twp. are the parents of Ethan Alan Sawnen, who died at 2 months of meningitis. Doctors had attributed the death to Shaken Baby Syndrome. Staff photo by Bill Reinke

“They told us it was Shaken Baby Syndrome,” Amber Shawen recalled Monday from her home. “They pried my son out of my arms and told me I was under investigation.”
But Ethan Alan Shawen did not die from Shaken Baby Syndrome on Aug. 20. He died from meningitis, according to the autopsy report released by the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office last week. An unknown organism caused the blood clots and swelling in Ethan’s brain, the report states. No child abuse was found.
The report closes the Kettering Police Department’s investigation of the case (the Shawens lived in Kettering when Ethan died) but brings little solace to the newlywed couple.
“If someone would have caught (the meningitis diagnosis) sooner, Ethan would still be alive,” Amber said.
Thomas Murphy, Children’s vice president for medical affairs, said he couldn’t talk about the Shawen case specifically because of privacy laws. He said that each patient death is reviewed at multiple levels, including after an autopsy, and that the Shawen family could meet with hospital staff members to discuss the case if desired.
The treatable but sometimes fatal meningitis, or swelling of the outer layers of the brain and spinal cord, can be caused by a bacterium or virus. It shares several symptoms with Shaken Baby Syndrome, including vomiting, lethargy and seizures.
The similarities raise questions about parents imprisoned for child abuse based on a Shaken Baby Syndrome diagnosis. Some medical experts and watchdog groups say the babies may be victims of undiagnosed vaccine damage.
If it weren’t for the coroner’s office, Amber said, “My husband would probably be sitting in jail, and so would I.”
http://medicalmisdiagnosisresearch.wordpress.com/2010/09/16/coroner-2-month-old-died-of-meningitis-not-shaking-baby/