News stories report that Dr. Thomas Nakagawa provided testimony yesterday in a case involving the death of 16 month-old Jamal Markes Shepard. Jamal had sustained severe life-threatening injuries from a bruised forehead, skull fracture, fractured arm, brain swelling and bleeding into his brain. His eyes had evidence of internal bleeding also. The toddler’s father, Joshua Earl Anderson faces charges of first-degree murder. He may be sentenced to life in prison. Attorneys representing the defendant told jurors that Mr. Anderson’s I.Q. is near mental retardation. The mother of the dead toddler testified that Mr. Anderson told her the baby slipped from his hold.
Perpetrators of child abuse rarely admit their crime during the initial investigation of the crime. While female caregivers abuse more often, male caregivers abuse more severely. Often the perpetrators version of events does not match the injury pattern sustained by the victim.
