By Chuck Hustmyre
December 7, 2006
BOULDER, Colo. (Crime Library) — District Attorney Mary Lacy announced on Wednesday that a grand jury has begun investigating the death of 10-week-old Jason Midyette, who died last March from severe brain injuries.
For months Lacy has tried to hide behind the veil of secrecy that shrouds Colorado's grand jury proceedings, but Wednesday she finally caved in to mounting media pressure and confirmed what Crime Library has been hearing for weeks, that a grand jury is looking into the brutal beating death of the Boulder infant.
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| Mary Lacy |
Jason Midyette died March 1, one week after his parents, Alex and Molly Midyette, brought him to the emergency room of Boulder Community Hospital. As soon as the underweight infant made it into the emergency room, veteran ER nurse Elaine Rottinghaus called 911. She told the dispatcher that the baby had suffered "significant abuse."
When a police officer arrived, Alex and Molly refused to talk to him. Family members held the officer at bay until the parents' attorney arrived.
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| Molly and Alex Midyette |
Young Jason Midyette's condition was so severe that shortly after he arrived at the hospital, he was transferred to Children's Hospital in Denver, where he underwent emergency brain surgery. Doctors pulled Jason off of life support five days later. Had he survived, doctors said, he would have likely spent the rest of his life in a vegetative state.
County Coroner Tom Faure later determined that Jason had suffered 27 broken bones, a fractured skull, and a severe brain hemorrhage, which resulted in his death. The coroner ruled the baby's death a homicide.
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| Tom Faure |
Alex and Molly Midyette have refused to answer any questions about what happened to their son and have not cooperated with the police investigation.
In Wednesday's brief press announcement, the District Attorney's Office said the grand jury was convened Oct. 5. The grand jurors, who meet just one night per week, have been hearing evidence in the case since Oct. 26, according to DA spokeswoman Carolyn French.
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