Uncle Shows Police How He Smothered Baby
A 5-month-old baby is dead from being smothered, and both the father and the uncle are facing charges as a result. But not for the same thing. Once is accused of murder, while the other is charged with lying to cover it up.
According to Wyoming Police Detective James Maguffee, the infant’s father and uncle brought the baby boy to Metro Health Hospital in Grand Rapids on the day after Christmas. However, medical staff determined that the baby, Isaiah, had been dead before he even arrived, and a police investigation was opened.
At first, Isaiah’s father told investigators that he had been sleeping in bed with his son when the baby became unresponsive. But after some time the uncle finally admitted that he had used pillows and blankets to quiet Isaiah. He even demonstrated for the officers exactly how he had covered the infant with three blankets and two pillows. He also admitted to leaving the baby covered that way for about one and a half hours, before finding him unresponsive.
21-year-old Viet Hoai Nguyen, the baby’s father has since been charged with lying to police. But 20-year-old Joseph Hoai Nguyen, who was caring for the baby at the time, is now facing an involuntary manslaughter charge.
According to the police investigators, Joseph Nguyen was until very recently, a junior at the University of Michigan. Several years of a college education, they say, mean that he should have known better. The prosecutor agrees, claiming that his actions were grossly negligent and any reasonable person would have known that a baby couldn’t survive those conditions.
The Nguyen brothers were arraigned in the Wyoming District Court by Judge Steven Timmers on December 30th. Joseph Nguyen was granted a $50,000 conditional bond, of which he has since posted 10%, and he is now free. Viet Nguyen was granted a $50,000 personal recognizance bond, however there is no word yet on whether or not he has posted bail. Both are forbidden to have any contact with children under the age of 16 while out on bail.
It is important to note that, even if the baby had not died in this case, there would have been a very real chance of child abuse charges. Smothering can cause suffocation, which if it doesn’t result in death, can lead to lack of oxygen in the brain. Termed “suffocatory abuse” by the National Institute of Health, it can result in life-threatening brain damage in infants and children.