Baby Sitter Accused of Causing the Death of a Baby
By Judy Chow
An innocent 10 month old infant was shaken to death by a baby sitter while the mother was at work.
On November 20, 2007, Isabel Barranco with her 10 month baby named Rodrigo and his two year old sister had moved into Angelica Duran’s two-bedroom San Jose apartment. Isabel did not know Duran as much as renting the apartment. Duran and her husband also had two young children but agreed to rent out a room to Barranco. Duran became Rodrigo’s baby sitter while his mother went to work.
The first time Duran took care of him she called Barranco to say Rodrigo had fallen asleep and would not wake up. Then, Barranco called back three minutes later and Duran said he was fine. The second time she took care of Rodrigo Duran called his mother again and told her that Rodrigo banged his head, which it was a lie. So, Rodrigo was sent to Regional Medical Center, and then he was sent to pediatric intensive care unit at the Valley Medical Canter (VMC).
The doctor said he was suffering from a head injury and bleeding internally. November 23, 2007, “Friday doctors at VMC told San Jose police sergeants John Seaman and John Knox that the boy was suffering from head trauma and had the slimmest chance of recovering. The doctors said it was possible the boy had been ‘shaken’.” (Sitter charged with shaking baby to death, San Jose Mercury News, retrieved on 11/29/2007)
Barranco told the officers that she received a call from Duran shortly before 5 p.m. that day. Duran told her that the baby was not breathing; therefore Duran decided to call the emergency. Barranco couldn’t be reached for comments because she was at work in a meeting. Duran was arrested that Friday and was booked into jail for an assault on a child with force likely to produce death. Rodrigo died early that Saturday on November 24, 2007. Duran’s charges were increased to murder.
Shaken baby syndrome
“Shaken baby syndrome is a potentially fatal form of child abuse. It occurs when a baby is forcefully shaken leading to damage within the child’s skull. The syndrome rose to prominence during the trial of Louise Woodward, the au pair who was found guilty of shaking baby Matthew Eappen to death. A UK study published in December 1998 found that 75% of babies who suffer brain injuries from shaking will die or suffer permanent disability.” (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/medical_notes/258072.stm)
Shaking is more likely to injure a baby than an older child or an adult because a baby’s neck muscles are still weak. Baby’s head is still relatively large and heavy compared to its body size. Infant’s brain tissue and blood vessels are still quite fragile. http://www.faqs.org/health/images/uchr_09_img0962.jpg
admin @ March 4, 2008