KFDA - NewsChannel 10 / Amarillo News, Weather, SportsShaken Babies Make A Lot Of Cases For Prosecutors

Shaken Babies Make A Lot Of Cases For Prosecutors

By Megan Moore
NewsChannel 10

Amarillo, Texas - Shaken baby syndrome is leaving area children brain dead or even dead, and prosecutors say the cases are brought to them more often than you may think.

Prosecutors say unfortunately, people are not getting the picture on how serious the act is.

Greg Cunningham with Child Protective Services says, "there's no line to be drawn other than at the very beginning. There's no exception. There's no amount of shaking a baby can sustain it simply cannot do it."

Randall County District Attorney James Farren says, "shaking baby events represent a large percentage of injury to a child cases."

In fact, Farren says up to more than 50 percent of them.  But sadly, many others cannot be prosecuted because the details simply are not there.

Farren says, "the child is so young it can't communicate but even if it can communicate it can't tell us because it's brain damaged."

Both Farren and Cunningham agree in most of the cases, the abusers are not monsters, rather people who just became frustrated with the children.  But both also say they should have gotten away from the children before the situation became dangerous.

Cunningham says, "you need to leave that child alone. Put them in a crib even an infant by itself is better off in a safe crib while you go and calm down."

Farren says, "If you feel you don't have the equipment to handle it, get help. Call us, call the police department, call Child Protective Services."