Baby Dies in Hospital Following Severe Injuries
The New Zealand Herald reports that a 6 month old child has died following severe head injuries that he suffered due to being assaulted. The report states that 30-year-old James Allan Hemana, also known as James Sylvia was charged with the crime.
The 6 month old baby was admitted to a New Zealand hospital with injuries that were consistent with being shaken and suffering serious hits to the head. The baby was admitted to the hospital and survived for two weeks before succumbing to the injuries this past Thursday. Sylvia was ordered to appear in court this past Friday, however, no word has been mentioned what consequences these charges will hold for Sylvia. In an investigation, three women were also being interviewed to get any information they may have regarding the incident. All three women were present at the house where the incident took place.
The charges in this incident may very well be upgraded from assault to murder given that the baby has now died. This type of crime should never happen by any circumstances. There have been many instances where babies are killed due to what is called “shaken baby syndrome” wherein they suffer serious head injuries resulting from trauma from being shaken. This is the worst possible kind of abuse to a child because a baby is physically unable to defend itself. There have been many cases where a parent will argue that they simply wanted to stop their baby from crying and that is why they shook the baby. However, there is no excuse for abusing a child in any way, especially in such a violent manner.
