In Nevada, Brayden Grusman-Buckmaster Death: Michelle Bork, Edward Thompson Charged With Murder Years After Shaking Baby, Cops Say | Shaken Baby Syndrome

The mother of a deceased 5-year-old has reportedly been charged with murder because her ex-boyfriend allegedly shook the boy as an infant.

Las Vegas woman Monique Bork, 26, reportedly brought her 6-week-old son, Brayden, to the hospital with serious head trauma in August 2006, according to 8 News Now.  His brain was reportedly swollen and bleeding, and his symptoms were consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

Brayden was reportedly on life support for 6 days. His injuries left him legally blind and suffering from cerebral palsy.

Police questioned both Bork and her boyfriend at the time, Edward Thompson.

Bork reportedly told police that a falling toy had hit Brayden in the head a few weeks earlier. Thompson, who is reportedly now 34, said that Bork was lying, and that really he had reportedly dropped a telephone on Brayden's face.

No arrests were made. After the incident, Brayden's maternal grandmother took custody of the boy for more than two years, before he was reportedly adopted by Tish Buckmaster and Gayle Grusman.

The boy reportedly spent most of that time in hospice care. He was reportedly fed through a gastronomy tube. 

When Brayden reportedly passed away in July 2011, at age 5, his deaths as ruled as a homicide, the result of the head trauma he sustained as a baby.

"He had no brain left from the injury," Grusman 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 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 Kansas, Clicks for Babies | Shaken Baby Syndrome

“Awwww” — that is what everyone says when they see a newborn baby. But when a baby cries for long periods of time and happen to be a frustrated caregiver, “Awwww” is not a word that comes to mind. Realizing that this commonly happens, along with a desire to help parents cope with a baby’s crying, is the focus behind the Period of Purple Crying campaign. Yes, this topic has been discussed before, but it really can’t be talked about enough.

A baby’s crying can often lead to a frustrated and tired parent or caregiver losing control momentarily and shaking their baby. While you might think that you would never do that, we have parents who have told us that they never thought they would shake their baby; and then they did. The video on Period of Purple Crying talks about that specifically and addresses the need for a support system for parents to rely on and to help develop coping methods.

As we wrapped up the Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Month in April, it seemed fitting to carry on the advocacy and share about the work that goes on daily with our community health care providers, early childhood care specialists as well as those who work in the Healthy Families programs that help support families. Their work along with the advocacy to prevent child abuse is a daily task and cannot be forgotten or taken lightly.

According to Child Help (www.childhelp.org) a report of child abuse is made every 10 seconds in the United States. Nationwide an average of five children die every day as a result of child abuse. Approximately 80 percent of those children who died from abuse are under the age of 4. As the stressful economic times continue, the number of abused children may grow even larger. So what is our best defense? It is education, awareness, advocacy, and support .

One of the advocacy and awareness opportunities that has been started is the Click For Babies campaign. Kansas Children’s Service League partnered with the national Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome to promote his campaign and distributes education DVD’s to families of newborns year round in participating Kansas hospitals. The purple caps will be given specifically to families in November and December of this year in a special promotion of awareness; an added reminder that crying is normal and it is NEVER okay to shake or harm an infant.

Neat idea? Yes it is. Last year, KCSL collected over 6,500 purple caps and distributed them statewide to birthing centers and hospitals in an attempt to raise awareness and decrease the number of infants being shaken or harmed due to crying. Our goal this year is 7,500 purple caps. That’s a lot of caps! How can you help? Fire up those knitting needles, crochet hooks or your trusty looms and get started! Every cap counts and is appreciated. Caps should be made using any shade of purple-colored yarn and made to fit a newborn infant’s head. Dimensions of infant heads will vary; as a guide, caps should have a circumference between 7.5 to 13.5 inches and a height of 3.5 to 6 inches. Please refrain from including “pom-poms” or any straps to secure caps to baby’s head. These pose a potential choking and or strangling hazard to babies. Caps need only to be 50 percent plus purple, so feel free to add additional colors, especially when making caps for baby boys. Designs and patterns for caps are completely up to the person making the caps, however, we have provided a few links to patterns that are available on line and some that have been shared with us by others. Visit the “Knit” page of the Clicks for Babies website (www.clickforbabies.org) and follow the links in the right margin. Last year we had several local knitting and crochet pros donate precious purple caps to us and the local KCSL office staff jumped in and knitted quite a few hats too. The Emporia office alone collected over 350 beautiful and creative hats/caps. It was a lot of fun and it was all for a very good cause.

If you would like to donate purple cap creations, please contact Bev Long at the local KCSL office, 340-0408 ext. 1001 or by calling 341-2076 to arrange free pick up. You may also bring your creations to the KCSL office at 215 W. 6th, (Emporia Humanitarian Center/former Lowther South Building), room 209. Please call first to make sure we are available to greet you and record your donation. You can also contact the project coordinator, Anne Auld, at the Wichita KCSL office by calling (877) 530-5275 ext. 1322 or emailing her at aauld@kcsl.org. All caps need to be collected by Oct. 1. The caps will then taken to the Wichita office for inventory, tagging and distribution statewide.

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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 Connecticut, $1M bond kept for man charged in baby's death | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A request for a bond reduction in the case of the West Haven man accused in the death of a 5-month-old Ansonia boy last summer was reportedly denied Tuesday in state Superior Court in Milford.

Angel Luis Santiago, 35, of West Haven, has reportedly been held in lieu of $1 million bond since his arrest in December. He is charged with first-degree manslaughter, first-degree assault and risk of injury in connection with the death of Kyle Robinson in June 2011.

Public Defender David Egan, who reportedly represents Santiago, asked Judge Richard Arnold to reduce the bond to $250,000, the amount, Egan said, was originally set in the case.

Egan, who said Santiago has a "minimal prior record," reportedly told the judge the higher amount would be appropriate if the charge was murder, but it's not. "It's an inappropriate amount" for the Class B felony he's charged with, Egan said.

But State's Attorney Kevin Lawlor reportedly said Santiago does have "a substantial" criminal record, including drug and larceny charges in New York.

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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 Michigan, Baby suffered from 'shaken baby syndrome' while at Mundy Township daycare, lawsuit alleges | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A lawsuit reportedly filed in Genesee Circuit Court claims that a Mundy Township daycare is responsible for severe injuries sustained by one of the children left in its care, despite an ongoing police investigation and a state investigation that turned up no violations.

Greg and Jennifer Henderson of Lennon are reportedly seeking more than $25,000 in damages after they claim their son received injuries consistent with “shaken baby syndrome” while at Honey Bear Child Care in December 2011.

According to a lawsuit reportedly filed by the couple’s attorney, Michael T. Ratton, the Hendersons were contacted by the daycare around 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 19, 2011, and were told that their child was unresponsive and was being transported to Hurley Medical Center.

The suit reportedly alleges that Hurley officials found no outward physical signs of trauma on the child but he did suffer multiple hemorrhages and seizures consistent with 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

In Nevada, Pair charged with murder in death of 5-year-old who was disabled as a baby | Shaken Baby Syndrome

Murder charges have reportedly been filed in the 2011 death of a boy who, authorities say, was shaken violently as a 2-month-old and ultimately died from injuries sustained at that time.

A criminal complaint reportedly filed in Las Vegas Justice Court charges Monique Bork, 26, and Edward M. Thompson Jr., 32, with murder and child abuse and neglect with substantial bodily harm in the death of Brayden Grusman-Buckmaster.

Bork is the child’s mother, and Thompson was reportedly Bork’s boyfriend when the baby-shaking occurred, police said.

In August 2006, Bork and a friend reportedly took the young baby to Sunrise Trauma Center, where doctors diagnosed him with injuries consistent with Shaken Baby Syndrome. The boy was in critical condition, and doctors told Bork the baby possibly would not survive the evening.

Bork reportedly told Metro Police in a voluntary statement at the time that her son was not acting himself but had not had any other accidents besides being hit in the head weeks previously by a falling toy.

In the intervening days, police reportedly also talked with Thompson, who said Bork was not telling the truth about the toy falling on the baby. Instead, Thompson said, he had dropped a telephone on the boy’s face.

Six days after the baby was reportedly taken to the hospital, Brayden was taken off of life-support equipment and placed in hospice care.

Meanwhile, Brayden reportedly spent 2½ years living with his maternal grandmother, then placed in foster care and ultimately was adopted. He survived for five years, police said, during which time he suffered from numerous medical problems, including blindness and cerebral palsy. He was nourished through a gastronomy tube until his death on July 10, 2011.

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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, Edwardsville man on trial in shaken-baby case | Shaken Baby Syndrome

A southern Illinois man reportedly faces up to 60 years in prison if he is convicted of murder in the death of his daughter, who prosecutors say lived roughly a decade after being shaken so severely by her father that she lost most of her brain function.

Torrance "Tyrone" Rogers, 31, of Edwardsville, reportedly already spent roughly seven years in prison on a felony attempted aggravated battery charge related to the injuries he inflicted on infant Taylor Rogers in 1999 after she wouldn't stop crying. Left nearly blind in that attack and requiring around-the-clock care, the girl eventually died of bronchial pneumonia in 2009 at the age of 9.

Rogers, who reportedly pleaded guilty to the lesser count in 2001 and was paroled from a 15-year sentence in 2007, went on trial Tuesday in Madison County on a first-degree murder charge related to the girl's death.

A prosecutor reportedly said that based on previous Illinois court rulings, it isn't a violation of Rogers' constitutional right against double jeopardy to try him for murder after he's been convicted of a lesser crime.

Circuit Judge Richard Tognarelli, who reportedly heard the case after Rogers waived his right to a jury trial, is deliberating the verdict.

Susan Jensen, a prosecutor, reportedly told the judge that Rogers admitted in the earlier case that he shook Taylor. Jensen also cited medical records, autopsy findings and determinations by the St. Louis medical examiner's office in saying Taylor's death was a homicide.

"The reason Taylor died was the injury she received at the hands of (Rogers)," Jensen said. "(Doctors) were surprised that she lived as long as she did."

Rogers' attorney, Lyndon Evanko, countered that an otherwise healthy child could have died of bronchial pneumonia as Taylor did, noting that a Cook County medical examiner who reviewed the girl's records at the defense's request questioned whether the child suffered 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