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SALT LAKE CITY — The conviction of a man who was found guilty of killing an infant girl in his care through abuse when he was 16 will stand, following a ruling from the Utah Court of Appeals released Nov. 16.
The court determined there was enough evidence to support the juvenile court's conviction of child abuse homicide.
While a teenager in early 2019, the man was the babysitter for 5-month old Adalyn Monson, who was the child of a cousin. The appellate court decision said the infant's parents returned home one day and found her in distress. The baby was taken to a hospital and died a few days later.
The juvenile court found in a trial that the 16-year-old who had been caring for the infant was guilty of child abuse homicide.
The teenager argued in his appeal that there was not enough evidence that he was the person who caused the injuries. The appellate court judges said there was testimony supporting that he was alone with the infant immediately before the symptoms appeared, and that the symptoms would have appeared quickly.
The court's opinion said the teenager did not have much experience caring for children, and the infant's father taught him the basics.
Adalyn was taken to the emergency room on May 2, 2019, but doctors did not find anything wrong. The baby appeared to be improving by May 6, 2019, but was fussy that night; then, on May 7, the teenager sent a video of the child showing a limp arm and labored breathing and asked, "Is this normal?"
The court's opinion said the baby's aunt stopped by to check on the baby who seemed lethargic, and administered medication and encouraged the mother to take the child to the hospital. The mother returned home, said the baby's legs were "dangling" and scheduled an appointment with a pediatrician before returning to work.
That evening the infant's parents returned home and found the baby "pale as a light"; they called 911 and began doing CPR. Primary Children's Hospital doctors concluded the baby had a severe brain injury.
The next day, the opinion says, the teenager sent two texts to the father of Adalyn and said he was sorry, that he would never intentionally hurt their kids, and "if it weren't for my laziness and wanting to relax, (the baby) wouldn't be like this and if I had never tossed her up in the air to try and cheer her up."
Two days later, the infant died. An autopsy said the cause of death was blunt injuries to the head.
The juvenile court trial lasted eight days, and had testimony from both parents of the child, medical experts and the responding officer. Doctors testified that the autopsy showed two head injuries, possibly one before the first trip to the hospital, and that the injuries did not appear to be accidental.
The teenager was ordered to secure care in juvenile facilities on Dec. 7, 2020, by 3rd District Juvenile Judge Mark May.
The Youth Parole Authority, which decides the length of placement in secure care, only has jurisdiction until a person is 21 years old. Since it has been almost five years since the crime, the defendant who is now at least 20 has either already been released from secure care or will be in the next few months.
