LAWRENCEBURG, IN – A 25-year-old man is now facing serious charges related to the death of a 21-month-old girl. Jesse Allen Sartin from Lawrenceburg, Indiana, has been apprehended and is currently held at the Dearborn County Jail on allegations of murder and aggravated battery.
The case emerged on July 24, when Lawrenceburg police were alerted to investigate a suspicious head injury sustained by a 21-month-old girl at St. Elizabeth Hospital Dearborn. The Prosecutor, Lynn Deddens, noted that while it was initially reported to be accidental, subsequent investigations revealed that Sartin had allegedly shaken the girl for about 20 seconds.
Official reports confirmed that Sartin was supposed to look after the toddler while her mother was away at work. The documents also revealed Sartin to be the boyfriend of the baby’s mother, but not her biological father.
Sartin’s account of the incident indicated that after he had left the girl unattended to fetch a bottle from the kitchen, the dog had knocked her off a chair, causing her to fall unconscious. However, as medical professionals assessed the child’s injuries, it was observed that the pattern wasn’t consistent with a fall but with signs of abuse and shaking.
After a few days into the investigation, Sartin reportedly confessed to shaking the child after she behaved aggressively and didn’t want to get out of the bathtub. He further admitted to have shaken the child on previous occasions, leading medical experts to conclude that the severe injuries to the child were a result of shaking.
The child succumbed to her injuries on Aug. 1. The autopsy report revealed swelling in the brain, significant hemorrhages in both eyes, and hemorrhaging in the spinal cord, diagnostic of shaken baby syndrome. The case is being treated as a homicide.