Two weeks ago, Tori Nelson reportedly got a message from the babysitter of her 3-month-old boy, Braxton, that no parent ever wants to receive.
Chris Musselman — Braxton’s father — told YourCentralValley.com that the babysitter said she fell on Braxton and then woke up only to find the infant “unresponsive.”
‘He cries, but his cry is different. You know your baby’s cry, and like, what they want and need. And I just don’t know anymore.’
With that, Braxton was rushed to emergency surgery for severe head trauma, the station said.
“We barged into the emergency room where the ambulance goes,” Musselman told the station regarding his and Nelson’s response. “We get yelled at by security guards.”
After a six-hour surgery, a doctor shared more bad news, the station said.
“He explained to us that his injuries weren’t consistent with a fall … [they] were consistent with a baby that had been shaken,” Musselman told the station. “And at that point, [the doctor] had no other choice as a mandatory reporter to involve [Child Protective Services] and involve the authorities.”
With that, 50-year-old Tonya Hamilton — a nonrelative caregiver of Braxton — was arrested and booked into the Madera County Jail in California on felony child abuse-related charges, the station said. The city of Madera is about 30 minutes northwest of Fresno.
As you might imagine, Braxton’s parents said the days since they first got word about their son have been a nightmare.
“He cries, but his cry is different,” Nelson revealed to the station. “You know your baby’s cry, and like, what they want and need. And I just don’t know anymore.”
Musselman added to the station that “it’s been absolutely tragic. No parent should ever have to go through this. No child should ever have to be treated this way.”
Naturally Braxton’s mom and dad are constantly at Valley Children’s Hospital by Braxton’s side, the station said.
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“I was heartbroken to see my son that way with all the tubes. And just, like, in the state that he was in, like, he never asked for this,” Nelson added to the station.
Musselman added to the station that “we haven’t held him for almost two weeks. It’ll be two weeks on Tuesday. And to not be able to console your child is heart-wrenching.”
One bit of good news is that Braxton is no longer in the Intensive Care Unit and no longer on a breathing tube, the station said, adding that his mom and dad finally got to hold him.
But the battle is far from over.
“He’s having heavy withdrawal symptoms just from the amounts of fentanyl and sedation that he was on,” Musselman told the station. “So we’re just trying to navigate that.”
Nelson added to the station that Braxton “is missing the whole right side of his skull right now. So the day that he comes home, we don’t know if he will come home with a skull or without a skull.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family pay for present and future medical costs and other expenses.
The sheriff’s office offered a public safety reminder: “Shaking a baby, even for a few seconds, can cause permanent brain injury or death. If you are feeling overwhelmed, place the baby in a safe location and step away. Ask for help. There is never an excuse for shaking a child. If you suspect child abuse, report it. Your call could save a life.”
The sheriff’s office also said the photo of Hamilton on its news release is from a California driver’s license photo and is not a booking photo.
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