A Stoneham father who shook his infant son vigorously, leaving the child in a vegetative state for eight years and eventually leading to his death, has been ordered to spend 15 years behind the bars.
The incident took place Sep.19, 2002.The eight-year-old child, who suffered serious brain injuries as a six-week old, finally succumbed to his injuries in May, 2011.
Police had reached the apartment on Franklin Street after they received an emergency call saying an infant was not breathing and responding. The boy was immediately rushed to an emergency room. Doctors diagnosed shaking the baby vigorously or shaken baby syndrome as the cause of death.
The victim's condition didn't improve even after undergoing treatments at several hospitals. Finally the boy was left under the care of his mother and family.
According to the court sentence, the child was in a "a vegetative state, unable to sit, stand, walk, hold his head up, control his extremities, swallow, or talk" until his death, boston.com reported.
The father Brain Saucier (42) was in state prison for assaulting charges. Though he had pleaded guilty, the Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone found Saucier responsible for his son's death.
"This defendant violently assaulted his vulnerable infant son, just 6 weeks old at the time, resulting in substantial brain injuries that left him severely disabled and which ultimately caused the victim's death eight years later," Stoneham Patch quoted District Attorney Leone, as saying. "By pleading guilty today, the defendant is held accountable for his actions that caused the victim's severe injuries and his subsequent death."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Shaken Baby Syndrome is one of the leading causes of child abuse deaths in the United States.
Shaken baby syndrome occurs when a baby is shaken vigorously for some time. The brain's backward and forward movement against the skull damages the brain, leading to death. Shaken baby injuries happen more often in children younger than two, but it can happen to children up to five years of age.
