In Illinois, No charges so far in Mount Prospect baby’s death | Shaken Baby Syndrome

No charges have reportedly been filed thus far in the death of a 4-month-old Mount Prospect girl found unresponsive last week at an unlicensed home day care center in Hoffman Estates.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office is reportedly conducting further studies after an inconclusive autopsy Monday, Hoffman Estates Police Sgt. Darin Felgenhauer said.

Anna Belle Chung, who was reportedly unconscious and not breathing when paramedics arrived the morning of April 18 at the home on the 4200 block of Crimson Drive, was taken to St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates, then transferred to Children’s Memorial Hospital that night. She was pronounced dead at 11:44 a.m. Saturday at Children’s Memorial, police said.

Meanwhile, an Illinois Department of Children and Family Services reported investigation into allegations of abuse against a care provider associated with the center also is pending, spokesman Jimmie Whitelow said.

DCFS has reportedly ordered the Hoffman Estates day care facility, Sunflower Christian Montessori, to cease operating. Messages left on the Montessori day care’s answering machine have not been returned.

Hospital officials reportedly told the Cook County Medical Examiner the death could be a result of shaken baby syndrome.

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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

We Can Calm Crying Babies: New Hope in the Fight Against Child Abuse | Shaken Baby Syndrome

*Excerpt from an article posted on huffingtonpost.com 

One beautiful spring day in 2009, a senior manager at MIT's world famous Media Lab was home with his 6-month-old while his wife was at church. He had cared for his baby before, but that day was very different. His baby's cries made him lose control and he shook his baby so hard it caused a fatal brain hemorrhage.

People tend to think of infant crying and colic as a parenting nuisance. But it is much more serious. In fact, sleep deprivation and blasting the sound of crying babies for hours are used to prepare the Navy elite SEALS to endure torture!

Crying -- and the demoralization and exhaustion it provokes -- trigger a cascade of serious consequences, including marital conflict, postpartum depression, breastfeeding failure, SIDS/suffocation, car accidents, cigarette smoking, maternal obesity... and child abuse.

Almost 580,000 children were reported as abused in 2008, 1,740 of them died of their injuries. In addition to this terrible human cost, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control estimates the financial cost of these abuses at $124 billion/year.

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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 South Dakota, Henry's Story: Surviving Shaken Baby Syndrome | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Nearly four and a half years later, A Hartford Family is reportedly trying to turn a tragedy into a triumph. Henry Johnson was a baby at the center of a court case after his daycare provider was accused of child abuse. Henry suffered life-threatening injuries as a result of Shaken Baby Syndrome, but unlike many children…Henry survived. Now, his family is on a mission to make sure their story isn't repeated...and that's what makes the Johnson family Someone You Should Know.

A bouncing ball of energy, 4-year-old Henry Johnson is reportedly nothing short of a miracle. When you meet Henry, his charming personality immediately wins you over. After brief introductions he grabs your hand to get a sense of who you are, and if you ask him to sing a song, it's enough to make your heart melt. But his little bits of conversation represent huge leaps and bounds.  When Henry was just 6 months old, his daycare provider was arrested after it was discovered Henry had suffered severe head trauma, very corner of his brain was damaged.  

Marissa Johnson, Henry’s mom reportedly says, “It's amazing to see him come up with new things now. He'll let us know, I want milk mommy…I mean that's huge, that's a big deal for us, that's what we celebrate.”

The lasting effects of the abuse are still evident; Henry is reportedly permanently blind and struggles with developmental delays. But new doors of opportunity open everyday for Henry. He sees around 7 different medical professionals each week, he's learning Braille and will be attending South Dakota's School For The Blind next year. And while Henry is still working to overcome obstacles; rather that focus on the negative, the Johnson's are doing their best to turn Henry's situation into something good. They've partnered up with the organization Child's Voice, to raise awareness and promote prevention.  This weekend, they're hosting the first ever “Henry's Run,” a 5K dedicated to spreading the word.


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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 California, Northstate Recognizes National Shaken Baby Awareness Week | Shaken Baby Syndrome

This week is National Shaken Baby Awareness Week. Enloe Medical Center in Chico has "Mother and Baby Education Classes" that reportedly teach parents how to cope and soothe crying babies the right way.

Each year, 1,500 babies are diagnosed with Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Heidi Cantrell, a registered nurse and Enloe Medical Center's Prenatal Education Outreach Coordinator, states, 
"if you ever feel that you're going to react then you need stop and put the baby down and not react. "

Heidi reportedly teaches parents techniques to use to help soothe their babies, especially when situations can feel overwhelming.

Cantrell says reportedly in most cases intense crying triggers the parent to lose control. She says, "you may feel overwhelmed or out of control and that's the opportunity to put your baby down into a safe place and take a deep breath, get yourself centered, allow other people to help you."


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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 Illinois, Police, DCFS investigate death of baby hurt at daycare | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Hoffman Estates Police and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services are reportedly investigating the death of a 4-month-old girl who died Saturday, possibly from shaken baby syndrome.

The baby girl, Anna Belle Chung, reportedly of East Debbie Drive in Mount Prospect, suffered injuries Wednesday at a home-based day-care center in Hoffman Estates and died three days later, said the medical examiner’s office.

The unidentified person reportedly being investigated for possible child abuse in Chung’s death was also investigated by DCFS for unrelated child abuse allegations in May 2010 that were later determined to be unfounded, said agency spokesman Jimmie Whitelow.

The girl’s parents are not the focus of the investigation, Whitelow said.

The day-care center reportedly looks like just another single family home on Crimson Drive in Hoffman Estates. But a look through the front window makes it clear the home has been set up to be a day-care center, with small chairs and tables, play stations and toys lining the wall, cribs in the dining room. The front landing is covered with chalk drawings of trains and other images.

The facility is incorporated as “Sunflower Christian Montessori,” though it appears on no list of licensed Montessori schools in Illinois. A message left on the school’s answering machine was not returned, and no one answered the door Sunday.

Neighbors reportedly said they suspected the home’s owners were running a day-care center because of the number of people dropping off kids and picking them up every day.

Police were reportedly called to the day-care center at 10:19 a.m. Wednesday for a report of a child unconscious and not breathing, police said Sunday.

She was reportedly taken to Saint Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates before being transferred to Children’s Memorial Hospital at 7 p.m., police said.

The baby was pronounced dead at Children’s Memorial 11:44 a.m. Saturday. The medical examiner’s office cited shaken baby syndrome as her preliminary cause of death.

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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 Colorado, Mother Details Realities Of Shaken Baby Syndrome | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Never, ever shake a baby-- we’ve heard this warning all too often because a moment of frustration can steal the life of a child.

This month is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and doctors are reportedly reminding the community about the dangers of shaking a baby and causing serious head trauma.

Jackie Washburn has 17 children, 15 are adopted, and two of them were reportedly victims of violent crime, and suffer shaken baby syndrome.

She remembers adopting her son Steven.

“He was a sweet little 6-week-old baby that had suffered a violent act of abuse,” says Washburn.

And Matthew, blind and deaf, with her for over a decade, but he died.

“He loved to spin, spin, spin in his bed. He would constantly be moving and one year we all got the flu,” says Washburn.

Doctors reportedly say Matthew would have survived if he weren't suffering from shaken baby syndrome.

Dr. Paul Grabb is director of pediatric neurosurgery at Memorial Hospital, and he says if a baby is shaken or slammed into a bed or sofa vary between brain damage or death.

“Each child is different in regards to the severity, but unfortunately there seems to be an upswing in the frequency,” says Grabb.

Steven is now 16-years-old and seems like a happy child, but despite Steven’s happiness, Washburn doesn't want people to forget the seriousness of shaken baby syndrome.

“He is basically nonverbal, always will be in diapers, has basically lost any semblance of a normal life, and it is replaced by caregivers instead of dates and wheelchairs instead of Hot Wheels or cars,” said Washburn.

Washburn and doctors at Memorial Hospital stress that there are options, and that it’s OK to leave the child safe in its crib and let it cry.

If you feel like you have reached your limit, call 1-800-4-A-CHILD to get some help.


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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 Georgia, 3 waive 1st hearings in death of Union City infant | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A Union City mother and two others reportedly charged in the death of her infant daughter waived their first court hearings Thursday, according to Channel 2 Action News.

The mother, Cella Copeland, has reportedly been charged with murder and cruelty to children in the death of the infant. The stepfather, Otis Lee Bennett, reportedly faces murder, cruelty to children and aggravated assault charges.Police charged  the three family members in the death of the nine-month-old baby, who was found face down and unresponsive in her crib at home on Monday.

Another family member in the household, Hetty Bennett, reportedly has been charged with cruelty to children. Police would not say how Bennett is related to the infant.

The three are reportedly being held in Fulton County Jail.

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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