A young Lithia Springs dad shook his 5-month-old son so hard he caused severe internal head injuries that left the infant blind.
And on Monday a Douglas County judge sentenced Mr. Archie Jarrell Isom, 24, to 20 years in prison and 10 years on probation with the stipulation that he has no further contact with his child or the boy’s mother, according to the district attorney’s office.
Mr. Isom pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated battery.
Assistant District Attorney Ms. Bonnie Smith told the court the baby suffered injuries consistent with Shaken Baby Syndrome, a medical term used for the internal head injuries a baby or young child sustains while being violently shaken.
The incident happened on Dec. 31, 2010 when Mr. Isom was left alone to watch the child while the mother was at work.
“Sometime during the mother’s lunch break she received a call from the defendant, who informed her something was wrong with the baby,” Ms. Smith said. “The defendant said he could not wake their son up and that something was wrong with the child’s body.
“She instructed him to hang up the phone and call 911and she rushed home to see what happened.”
An ambulance rushed the unconscious 5-month-old to WellStar Douglas Hospital where the mom found out the grim news.
“A doctor immediately noted retinal hemorrhages on the baby, a key sign of a child who has been shaken,” Ms. Smith. “Doctors knew the baby was seriously injured and had him life-flighted to Scottish-Rite, which likely saved his life.”
When the child arrived at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite Hospital, a team of doctors also determined the injuries were consistent with him being shaken.
Mr. Isom said nothing while the boy’s mom remained at his side, wondering what happened and when her son would come out of his coma,
When Mr. Isom finally broke his silence, he told authorities the child fell off a bed while he was washing dishes in another room.
But his story didn’t match up the boy’s injuries, the doctors said.
And Mr. Isom changed his story again. He tripped over a cat while carrying the baby, he told authorities. The accident, according to Mr. Isom, caused the child to fall and bump his head on the ground.
His story still didn’t match up.
Investigators determined that Mr. Isom shook his 5-month-old son so hard that it caused brain swelling, bleeding of blood vessels in the eyes and blindness, prosecutors said.
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