Caretakers arrested in 2 cases of suspected child abuse

Published 11:08 pm Tuesday, September 25, 2007

EVERETT — One toddler has broken bones and a severe head injury that has left him unconscious. Another boy has a broken leg and bruises over his body.

Both boys were in the care of men their parents trusted to keep the children safe.

Police believe those men abused that trust and seriously injured the two boys. One man, 31, was arrested early Monday for investigation of assaulting a 1-year-old boy he was baby-sitting. He told investigators the boy slipped out of his arms and fell down some concrete stairs.

A second man, 27, was arrested Monday night on allegations that he broke the leg of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son. He told police he remembers grabbing the boy’s arm and leg but doesn’t know how the boy was hurt.

Both men were expected to appear in Everett District Court today for a judge to determine whether probable cause exists to hold them in jail for investigation of first-degree assault of a child. Those hearings were scheduled for Tuesday but continued until today because both men’s attorneys were unavailable.

Child abuse experts say these sorts of cases underscore the importance of trying to figure out what more can be done to keep children safe.

Child abuse, and more often chronic neglect, are generally the result of a lack of knowledge about parenting and the situation can be improved by educating people on how to handle the stresses of caring for a child, said Chris Jamieson, spokeswoman for the Washington Council for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.

“There is no excuse for child abuse. Parenting is a tough job,” she said. “I think abuse comes down to frustration and a lack of experience and education.”

Extreme abuse cases are rare, Jamieson said. The vast majority of mistreated children are the victims of chronic neglect, she said. That often is more difficult to detect.

The best way to protect children is for parents and caregivers to be educated. They need to know what triggers their stress, to be realistic about what to expect from a child and to ask for help if they need it, Jamieson said.

“If people have that knowledge, kids would and will fare better,” she said.

That means finding appropriate child care.

“There is nothing more important than choosing high-quality care for your children,” said Elizabeth Bonbright Thompson, executive director of Washington State Child Care Resource and Referral Network. “We spend more time picking out a new car.”

The network offers resources to parents about how to choose a child care provider, including in Snohomish County. It also offers information about state subsidies for child care and training for providers.

Many parents rely on relatives, neighbors or friends to care for their children. The need to educate these caregivers often is overlooked, Bonbright Thompson said.

“This is about shadow care, not about licensed care,” she said.

Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson said he has found that many perpetrators are simply ill-equipped to handle a crying child. They do whatever it takes to get silence, he said.

“It’s rarely, if ever, a stranger. The vast majority children’s injuries are caused by adults who are supposed to be caring for them,” he said.

Police arrested a baby-sitter Monday at the apartment he shares with his wife and his own two children. The man, a friend of the boy’s parents, was watching the boy on Sept. 13. Police and firefighters were called after the man’s wife called 911 to report that the boy was unconscious and likely had a broken arm. The boy was rushed to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Doctors there determined that the boy had bleeding inside his skull, a fractured jaw, a broken arm and cracked ribs. He also had bruises in multiple stages of healing.

The baby-sitter told firefighters that the boy fell down some concrete stairs outside the apartment building. He later said he was carrying the boy when he tripped and fell, causing the boy to tumble out of his arms.

Doctors said that boy’s injuries are inconsistent with a fall, according to a police affidavit filed with the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office. He had grip marks on his shoulder blade and left arm. The doctor said the 1-year-old’s broken jaw likely was the result of a punch to the face, police reported.

The man had baby-sat the boy three days before he was taken to the hospital. The toddler had multiple bruises, but the baby-sitter told the boy’s parents the child had fallen over a chair and also was injured by the older children.

In the other case, Everett police arrested the man at his job in north Everett late Monday night. They also served him with temporary protection order that his girlfriend obtained in court that day.

The man was jailed for investigation of assaulting his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son on Sept. 12. He and the boy’s mother took the child to The Everett Clinic, where doctors determined that the boy suffered a spiral fracture in his left leg. The child also had bruises on his chin, neck and head that were consistent with fingertips, according to a police affidavit. The boy was taken to Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle. A doctor told investigators spiral fractures can be caused by falls but coupled with the all the other bruises, it was likely that the boy’s broken leg was the result of abuse, police reported.

Initially the man told police the boy had fallen between a bed and wall and twisted his leg. Later he told investigators he remembers grabbing the boy’s left ankle and right arm, according to the affidavit. The man said he remembers “huffing and puffing” and being upset, and the boy with a “surprised look on his ace,” police reported.

The man told investigators he doesn’t remember exactly how the child was hurt. He said it was possible that he blacked out because of diabetes.

The child is under the care of Child Protective Services. The other boy has been moved from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle to an assisted living facility.