In Florida, Father Charged with Murder in Shaken Baby Case | Shaken Baby Syndrome

The Oakland Park father reportedly picked up a notepad and shook it violently, a demonstration to detectives on how he shook his 5-month-old child because the boy was fussy, officials said.

"It was disgusting," recalled Broward Sheriff's Detective Michael Vadnal.

Paul Day, 41, of Pompano Beach, was reportedly arrested Wednesday on a murder charge in the death of little Anibus Day, the Sheriff's Office said. The boy never regained consciousness following the June 11, 2009, shaking incident and died on Dec. 15 last year, authorities said.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Man sentenced to 10 years in shaken-baby death | Shaken Baby Syndrome

An Orange County man was reportedly sentenced to a decade in prison after pleading no contest this afternoon to aggravated manslaughter of a child in the death of his girlfriend's 6-month-old daughter.

Lonnie Leonard Jr., 23, was reportedly charged last year in the Nov. 20, 2010, death of Malloree Tatum.

Leonard reportedly told investigators the baby fell off a bed. But doctors and a medical examiner said it was impossible the trauma the child suffered was caused by a fall from that height, and her injuries were more consistent with shaken-baby syndrome.

Leonard's plea bargain reportedly allowed a sentence up to 20 years in prison, but Circuit Judge Janet Thorpe sentenced him to 10.

Thorpe reportedly noted that the state agreed to 10 years as a minimum for the plea, and that family members who testified at a recent hearing — including Malloree's mother — testified that Leonard wouldn't have hurt the girl on purpose, and asked for leniency.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Man arrested after girl suffers severe head trauma | Shaken Baby Syndrome

An Orange County man reportedly faces aggravated child abuse charges after a girl in his care was rushed into surgery with what doctors and detectives are calling a case of shaken baby syndrome.

Michael DeLeon, 23, is reportedly already on probation in a child abuse case, but he now faces new charges. DeLeon claimed a child at his West Colonial Drive home fell from a bunk bed last week, but investigators believe something more sinister is to blame for the child’s severe head trauma.

As doctors reportedly rushed the victim into surgery at Arnold Palmer Hospital on Aug. 24, a Department of Children and Families case worker reported the child’s injuries to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy spoke with witnesses from the home who described a frightful scene.

According to the deputy’s initial incident report, the girl’s mother reportedly said she heard a “strange noise” while her daughter played alone in her bedroom. She said she then found her lying on the floor, vomiting. The girl’s mother said she fell from a bunk bed ladder.

In a later interview with detectives, the woman reportedly admitted that the child cried out for her on the day of the incident and that when she entered the bedroom, 250-pound DeLeon was holding the injured child in his arms.

DeLeon reportedly denied being in the child’s room when she was injured and reiterated that the child fell from a bunk bed ladder. On Wednesday, when deputies told him that the girl’s severe injuries were not consistent with a fall, according to doctors, he asked to leave, the report said.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Former day care owner Spurgeon gets 15 years in baby's death | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A former Palm Harbor home day care provider was reportedly sentenced today to 15 years in prison in the death of a baby in her care. Stephanie Spurgeon was found guilty of manslaughter in February.

Spurgeon reportedly ran a daycare out of her home in the Deep Spring subdivision. On Aug. 1, 2008, the grandmother of 1-year-old Maria Harris picked her up after her first day at the home, to find Harris limp and not acting normally.

Maria reportedly died soon after.

Through tears, grandmother Pat Harris reportedly said: "I loved that baby so much. I would've gladly died in her place."

Judge Cynthia Newton reportedly said the jury spent almost 24 hours deliberating on this case. "That's longer than any other trial I've had," she said.

"Considering all the circumstances and testimony, the only just sentence in this case would be the 15-year maximum."

During the trial, medical evidence about "shaken baby syndrome" was reportedly presented. The prosecution presented doctors that testified Maria Harris had been thrown onto a bed or shaken very hard.

Spurgeon's defense team reportedly countered that nobody saw their client hurt the child, and the infant's injuries could have happened long before being dropped off at the day care center.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Father sentenced to prison in son's shaken-baby syndrome death | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A man reportedly accused of fatally injuring his 8-week-old son in 2010 was sentenced to more than two decades in prison on Friday.

Alfonso Tapia-Lopez, 31, reportedly pleaded no contest to second-degree murder last month. Investigators said his son, Alfonso Angelo Tapia, suffered brain injuries consistent with shaken-baby syndrome while in Tapia-Lopez's care in October 2010.

The child reportedly died at a local hospital. Tapia-Lopez was arrested later that month on a bus in Louisiana. Authorities said he was in the United States illegally, and may have been attempting to flee the country.

He was reportedly sentenced Friday to 22 years in state prison, with credit for almost two years served in the Orange County Jail. He will be deported upon his completion of the sentence.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Man will plead to manslaughter in death of 6-month-old girl | Shaken Baby Syndrome

An Orange County man will soon plead to an aggravated manslaughter charge in the death of a 6-month-old girl, but family, friends and the victim's mother testified Wednesday that they don't believe he did anything wrong.

Lonnie Leonard Jr., 23, was charged last year in the Nov. 20, 2010, death of Malloree Tatum.

Leonard told investigators the baby fell off a bed, according to testimony. But doctors and a medical examiner say it's impossible the trauma the child suffered was caused by a fall from that height.

One doctor noted severe retinal bleeding consistent with shaken-baby syndrome — "one of the worst cases" he'd seen, an affidavit said.

The girl's mother, Tameka Tatum, said at a plea conference Wednesday she still loves Leonard.

"I actually cannot believe he did anything wrong," she said. Tatum asked the judge to sentence Leonard to probation — not prison — for the first-degree felony manslaughter charge.

Prosecutor Pam Davis asked Tatum how she believed her daughter was fatally injured.

"I honestly believe she fell off of the bed," Tatum said. Asked Davis, "and hit what?"

"I don't know," Tatum replied.

After Tatum, several other loved ones testified that Leonard would never have harmed Malloree.

"I don't feel he did this at all," testified step-mother Amy Walker-Leonard. Lonnie Leonard Sr. said his son "loved [Malloree] to death... he wouldn't hurt her."

However, Orange County homicide Det. Chris Dillon testified the baby's injuries didn't fit the younger Leonard's version of events. A 25-inch fall onto carpet, he said, could not have caused her trauma.

Leonard Jr. will plead to aggravated manslaughter of a child at a hearing on Sept. 14, according to testimony.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Largo man guilty of murdering baby son | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A jury on Thursday reportedly found Michael L. Giovo Jr. guilty of first-degree murder in the death of his 4-month-old son. He was automatically sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Skyler Giovo died in late 2008. Authorities reportedly say he was the victim of shaken-baby syndrome.

Giovo of Largo has reportedly insisted he did nothing to hurt his son. The baby must have died, Giovo told police, because he fell off a couch on Thanksgiving night. Giovo's fiancee was asleep that Thanksgiving night when the shaking occurred.

The baby reportedly began twitching the next morning, so the couple took him to a hospital. Days later, he was removed from life support.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Pasco man sentenced to 30 years in prison for shaking baby | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Before he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, Jonathan Gelb reportedly stood at the front of the courtroom and proclaimed his innocence.

"I didn't abuse you," Gelb reportedly said Friday to his son, Lukuz, who was hurt so severely that he is in a permanent vegetative state. He was in the courtroom Friday. Lukuz, nearly 4, cannot see, walk, talk or feed himself. He wears a helmet to protect his head. He is so fragile, his family says, he could die any day.

A jury reportedly decided last month that Gelb, now 28, was the one who hurt his son and convicted Gelb of aggravated child abuse. Gelb had been watching Lukuz, then 2 months old, on Sept. 30, 2008, when he called the baby's mother and said she needed to come home because Lukuz was twitching. When Leann Rodriguez got to their Port Richey home, she found the infant gasping for air. Doctors said Lukuz's brain was bleeding and he had leg fractures — new and old ones. Experts testified Lukuz's injuries were consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

"I hope some day you can look at yourself and know what you did was wrong," Rodriguez said in court, looking at Gelb as she spoke.

Gelb reportedly said he was guilty only of not immediately calling 911 when he noticed his son was in distress.

"Lukuz, we are all people," he said. "We all make mistakes."

He was reportedly adamant that he didn't cause the boy's injuries. Gelb, who has been in the Pasco jail since his arrest in December 2009, said he has a photo of his son with him in his cell. He said he loves Lukuz.

"What is the answer to my son's condition?" Gelb said. "I still don't know. But I am going to do everything I can to find out why my son is the way he is today."

He reportedly plans to appeal the conviction.

Gelb could have gotten as little as seven years in prison. The maximum was 30 years. "If I had more to ask, I would," said Assistant State Attorney Eva Vergos.

She reportedly said Lukuz's family feels thankful the boy survived. But Gelb caused "irreparable harm."

Lukuz "certainly is not enjoying the quality of life that a 4-year-old child should be enjoying," Vergos said.

Circuit Judge Mary Handsel reportedly gave Gelb the maximum — 30 years. Handsel spoke of how Gelb said he is searching for answers.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Pasco father, 28, convicted in shaken baby case | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A jury reportedly found a father guilty Friday of shaking his baby son so hard it caused brain damage in one of the worst child abuse cases the prosecutor says she has ever seen.

Jonathan Gelb, 28, reportedly faces up to 30 years in prison after a jury of four women and two men found him guilty of aggravated child abuse on his then 2-month-old son, Lukuz. He is scheduled to be sentenced June 15.

Gelb reportedly showed no emotion as he learned his fate, while the child's mother, Leann Rodriguez, wept amid a sea of embraces from her family.

Next to her sat Lukuz in a baby chair. The boy, who reportedly turns 4 this summer, also began to cry. Due to his injuries, Lukuz cannot see, walk, talk, or eat on his own. But Rodriguez said after the verdict that somehow, she hopes, he heard justice being done.

"I did this for him. He may not be able to see but he can hear what is being done. And I wanted Jonathan to see what he had done as well," Rodriguez said of having their son in the courtroom for the verdict.

Prosecutors told the jury that on Sept. 30, 2008, Rodriguez came home from work to find her son limp in Gelb's arms, barely breathing. Jurors heard Rodriguez's harrowing 911 call as a dispatcher talked her through giving her son CPR. Assistant State Attorney Eva Vergos played the emotional call again during closing arguments.

Doctors reportedly found bleeding in Lukuz's brain and broken bones in his leg. Several doctors found the baby had injuries consistent with shaken-baby syndrome. During her closing argument, Vergos questioned why Gelb never called 911.

"That's not a caring father, ladies and gentleman," Vergos said.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Mother describes son's brain damage | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Leann Rodriguez reportedly found the strength Wednesday to calmly tell jurors about finding her baby nearly four years ago with limp limbs, gasping for air in the lap of his father.

But her 911 call on Sept. 30, 2008, reportedly revealed the horror of giving her then-2-month-old son, Lukuz, CPR in a desperate attempt to get him breathing. Prosecutors played Rodriguez's call as part of an effort to prove Jonathan Gelb had earlier shaken his son, causing his brain to bleed and breaking bones in his leg.

Reportedly left with serious brain damage, Lukuz, now 3, cannot see, eat without a tube, walk or talk. Gelb, 28, is reportedly on trial this week on a charge of aggravated child abuse. If convicted, he faces up to 30 years in prison. The trial is expected to last two more days.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com

In Florida, Pasco shaken baby trial begins with mother testifying against the child's father | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Even before baby Lukuz Gelb was born, his mother already reportedly nicknamed him Lucky.  She says he was the perfect little boy. 

But in September 2008, when Lukuz was just two months old, Leann Rodriguez reportedly came home to where she lived in Port Richey and found her son wasn't breathing.  Doctors told her the boy had severe brain injuries and broken bones in his legs.  

"Worst case of shaken baby syndrome that they've seen in the state of Florida," Rodriguez was told. 

Authorities reportedly soon arrested the man they say is responsible for hurting Lukuz.  It wasn't a baby sitter or daycare worker --but the boy's own father, Jonathan Gelb.

Wednesday morning at the Pasco County courthouse in New Port Richey, testimony began in Gelb's trial.  He is reportedly charged with aggravated child abuse.

The child was in the courtroom, but he was taken home before the trial started. It's likely the jury will not see him in person.

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If you have any questions or concerns about what can be done to help babies who have been shaken, or families of babies who have died, please call Christopher Keane and The Keane Law Firm toll-free for free consultation at (888) 592-5437 (KIDS), click on contact us here, or use the web form provided at http://www.keanelaw.com