Shaken-baby cases can be difficult to prosecute

Caregivers of crying babies need patience. Unfortunately, a local prosecutor said there have been several instances in the past few years when a baby's caregiver snaps and does the unthinkable - shakes the infant.

"It's usually the kid won't stop crying, and whoever's taking care of it just loses it," said Brenda Brisbin, an assistant solicitor for the 2nd Judicial Circuit.

Ms. Brisbin recently attended a conference about shaken-baby syndrome in Utah to assist with the prosecution of such cases in Aiken County.

The cases are rarely easy to prosecute, she said, and often hard to prove.

This month, Ms. Brisbin was handed a shaken-baby case, and she has a similar case pending, as does her boss, Solicitor Barbara Morgan.

"We've had several over the past couple of years," she said. "It's a very controversial diagnosis.

"We're starting to refer to it more as abusive head trauma because it can be caused not just by shaking but also impact."

Impact often comes when the baby is thrown down, she said.

An important thing she learned at the conference - which, it appeared, was attended by more doctors than lawyers, Ms. Brisbin said - is to have the right expert to prove the findings.

"It tends to become a battle of the experts," she said. "So you have to have someone with proper training and experience testing shaken-baby syndrome and abusive head trauma to explain it properly."

The syndrome often is diagnosed after the infant is taken to the hospital, typically after the baby has lost consciousness or has seizures.

Doctors might find subdermal hematomas, retinal hemorrhaging or brain swelling, she said.

There might even be skull fractures or bruising, but the baby might not have those telltale signs.

Sometimes, the evidence can't be found unless the child has died and an autopsy is performed, Ms. Brisbin said.

An expert testifying about the trauma is beneficial when it comes to the medical explanations of what happened to the child, she said.

Ms. Brisbin said that even though she is a former nurse, "some of it's over my head. So you can imagine how difficult it can be for a jury."

The most important thing the general public needs is "to be educated that shaking a baby can cause brain damage."

Reach Sandi Martin at (803) 648-1395, ext. 111, or sandi.martin@augustachronicle.com.