Kelso man accused of shaking girlfriend's baby to death
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KELSO, Wash. - A man charged in the murder of his girlfriend's 1-month-old son made his first court appearance Monday.
Christopher Everette, 20, has admitted he shook the baby, but according to court records, his story changed, because at first he denied he had done so.
Police say Everette didn't admit to shaking the baby until he found out just how seriously the baby was hurt. He learned the baby had broken ribs, bruising on his chest and that the child might be brain dead.
Everette appeared on a court television monitor from jail. He was caring for his girlfriend's baby, James Childers, Friday morning at their Kelso home where the couple lived with the child.
Briana Childers was not home at the time but, according to court documents, Everette told police he found the infant not breathing face down in his crib and shook him for one to two minutes, trying to wake him. After shaking him, he called 911 and performed CPR. It was about noon when the 911 call was made.
But in the court documents, doctors said there was no way it was an accident.
Neighbors said the couple kept to themselves but didn't suspect any problems until Friday when emergency crews got to the home.
"I was like, 'Oh my God, I hope it's all right,' and I started crying because it was just such a newborn-looking baby. It was like, 'Oh my God,'" said Carrie Ann Rigdon, who lives near the couple.
Childers was in court. She held flowers and was consoled by other family members and friends.
A friend of hers and Everette's told KATU News she holds Everette responsible for her baby's death.
"She believes Chris did it," said Justice Mendez. "But she wasn't home when it happened. She just got a phone call that the baby stopped breathing. But I don't know why she thinks he would do that. He wouldn't."
In court, the prosecutor noted Everette was a suspect in another child abuse investigation in December of last year. In that case, a child suffered a broken leg. But the defense argued criminal charges were never pursued in that case.
The baby was a 1-month-old. The previous caption to this story had the incorrect age.
In the video caption, it says he shook a 1-year-old to death, and in the story it says 1-month-old.... either way, its horribly tragic.
What a piece of crap this guy is. Â I hope he gets his in prison.
a suspect last December, an inmate at last.
IÂ had an employee of mine do this many years ago.. Once I showed up in court and was sitting next to his wife he fessed up about the whole ordeal.. What happens is the baby begins to cry, and weak minded people can't handle that, he shock the baby but this time the baby lived with injuries she will wear the rest of her life..
These people tell you who they are along the way if you just listen closely !
This guy should have been shaken while he was a baby, or maybe he was. Either way, another poor, unprotected child child dies needlessly. What is happening to caring parents and adults?
SO how old was this child? Â Caption says ONE YEAR Â article says ONE Month..make up minds, KATU
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How sad...another infant death due to shaking/or hitting....a young man hurting a child not his own...this is happening too often.
 @BCH mom What is happening too often is these children have no mothers.Â
 @BCH mom  @ jpk  Sorry, intended my comment as a reply to jpk, not to BCH mom.
In all cases of shaken baby syndrome a condition known as Barlow's variant must be ruled out. Â An infant with a low level of vitamin C will have very high levels of histamine, particularly after injections of foreign proteins, such as a vaccination. The easy bruising, bone fracture, retinal and central nervous system hemorrhages caused by low Vitamin C and high histamine mimic shaking trauma. Blood vitamin C and histamine levels will rule in or rule out this condition.Should be looked at.
 @Bob Since Barlow's "should" be identified or ruled out in the undetermined cause of death of babies and toddlers, is Barlow's testing an automatic procedure in discovery, or is it at the discretion of the judge or forensic lab? Â
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If not a legal requirement which would provide test result to court, it's just another thing that citizens MUST order their employees who are elected to OUR government offices as Representatives and Senators to create and process the requirement through a Bill to a Law. It's really up to citizens to do that. Â The employees (Reps/Senators) won't add work to their calendars. Â Reps really only work 3 days a week, and do not work many other periods such as breaks and holidays, so if enough folks care enough to establish Barlow's Law perhaps those who murder children by shaking will be stopped before advancing to become serial murderers. Â It's up to you, reader. Â It's our job as We The People. Â Simply email your Reps with the directive that a bill be established requiring Barlow's testing in all undetermined cause deaths of infants, toddlers, children, and email your Senators to be watchful for the Bill to arrive and to process it immediately for signing into law. Don't bother detailing reasons other than testing to assist in determining cause of death of child. Â Takes 2 emails from you to get it started. Â If you advise in your emails that citizens in other states are also contacting their officials to do the same, it will move faster because of "competition."
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 @FrozenStar  @BobÂ
 @FrozenStar I don't know what is legally required.  If the condition called Barlow's Variant is genuine (I think the evidence supports that it is) it would seem this kind of analysis should be mandatory.  If the tests are negative then the condition is ruled out.  If the tests are positive then a medical condition, not intentional violence against a child, must be considered by the jury as the cause of injury or death.  Unless there is a witness to the event I think a positive test would create a reasonable doubt as to guilt. I mean, how could you be certain what the cause of the injury was when the infant had biochemical abnormalities sufficient to explain the medical findings? I think it is better that a guilty person go free than an innocent person be wrongly convicted. Not a perfect world.
Thanks for sharing that information.
Boyfriends and baby sitters out number genetic parents by a wide margin.
@swimbad Sorry to say, they are not much better sometimes!
 @jpk  @swimbad I'm only talking about the critically injured and death of only a few weeks to, let's say, toddler. as far as good and bad parents go, that is another somewhat predictable situation but another topic mostly.Â