Jury convicts teen for harm inflicted on her 5-week-old
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Convicted on lesser charges than prosecutors had hoped, Ramirez will now likely receive a sentence of only two to four years, instead of the 15 to 25 years that accompany the Class A felony charges for which she was on trial.
“I couldn’t be happier. Anais will be a free girl soon. She could be out in as little as the day of sentencing,” said her attorney, Joe Edwards. “I think the jury really took this case seriously and did a good job.”
Ramirez, 18, faced charges of aggravated child abuse and aggravated child neglect stemming from severe brain injuries sustained by her 5-week-old son last year. It was alleged by prosecutors the injuries occurred when Ramirez, irritated with her baby’s crying, shook him for an undetermined amount of time before throwing him on an air mattress.
Taking the stand in her own defense Wednesday, Ramirez maintained she did not shake and throw her baby and that her confession to police investigators was coerced.
“I felt pressured. I felt I had no choice. I felt when I told them I didn’t do that they didn’t believe me. I told them I did it to get them to leave me alone,” she said.
While saying she didn’t know for certain what caused the brain injuries to her baby, Ramirez speculated the injuries could have been caused when the baby, placed on a pillow on the edge of a couch, had fallen onto a hard floor and hit its head when she was not in the room.
During his cross examination, Attorney General Dale Potter repeatedly questioned her story, pointing out what he saw as flaws. Potter said the doctor who treated the child at Vanderbilt and who is director of that facility’s Child Abuse and Neglect program, who had no motive to lie, said he was all but certain the baby had been shaken. The doctor further said due to injuries, the baby would not be able to live a normal life.
Potter further questioned Ramirez’s love for her baby, pointing out she had smoked, drank and used hard drugs while pregnant and had gone clubbing and gotten drunk a few days before the alleged shaking incident occurred.
Testifying for the defense was local attorney Lisa Zavogiannis, who acted as the baby’s attorney over a six-month period last year after the alleged incident occurred. She testified she saw the baby on several occasions, most recently at a Christmas Party in December.
“He’s a beautiful child. I put him on my shoulder and he patted my pack, cooed and smiled. He paid attention to his foster parents and watched what they did. They stimulated him. He looked like a happy baby,” she said, noting to Potter he may not have been perfectly normal for a baby his age.
In response to Zavogiannis’s testimony, the prosecution brought in Glen Ramsey, a Cookeville police officer who recently adopted the child with his wife. While noting he is in no way an expert, Ramsey testified the child, now 13 months old, is developmentally behind other children his age.
“He’s not walking or even crawling. He just started rolling over on his own two weeks ago. He doesn’t move his legs, his left side is weaker than his right and his head is very small and is not expected to grow to normal size because his bran has stopped growing,” he said.
After the trial’s conclusion, Potter expressed his disappointment.
“I’m not pleased with the outcome, but she was found guilty and that’s what’s important,” Potter said. “I would have liked to have the aggravated child abuse conviction, but that’s for a jury to decide.”
Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Bart Stanley April 23.