Arrested for allegedly killing 1-year-old girl with shaking that removed her corneas

A Detroit, Michigan-area man has been charged with felony murder after he allegedly forcefully shook a 1-year-old girl to death.

Arrested for allegedly killing 1-year-old girl with shaking that removed her corneas

Police in Roseville, Michigan, have said the Dec. 17 incident was not accidental and arrested Dennis Wayne Justus, 28, last Friday.

Melissa Hartley, the girl’s mother, claimed in an interview with FOX that the suspect shook the girl so hard that her corneas were dislodged from her head and caused bruising, or internal bruising caused by internal bleeding, behind her eyes. “How can you shake a baby so hard?” she told the media outlet. “This was no accident.”

The baby was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment, but ultimately succumbed to her injuries, according to police.

“I just want justice for my daughter,” Hartley told the media. “I really trusted Justus and thought he was really a good person. I didn’t want to believe it. I still don’t want to believe it.”

Patrick Donohue, founder of Brain Injury Rights Group, suspects the shaking must have been long if it caused fatal injuries to a 1-year-old, since babies around 1 year old have more muscle strength in their necks than newborns and month-olds.

Brain injuries are “one of the leading causes of death and disability in infants,” said Donohue, whose own daughter suffered life-changing injuries after a babysitter shook her in 2005.