A Hammond man admitted this week to causing a “life-threatening” brain injury to his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son, documents show.
Marc A. Burnett, 21, signed a plea agreement on Sept. 11 to neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury, a Level 3 felony.
If a judge accepts the plea deal, he faces up to 16 years in prison.
His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 31.
His trial scheduled for next week was canceled. He was originally charged with four counts of neglect and faced at maximum, nearly 65 years.
Staff at the NW Indiana ER & Hospital, 7904 Cabela Drive in Hammond called police around 9 p.m. on March 8, 2023, after the child was brought in with “suspicious” injuries. The boy was quickly airlifted to a Chicago pediatric hospital.
Doctors there said the initial care the Northwest Indiana site provided likely saved the boy’s life.
The mother said she was at work at a restaurant in Illinois and let Burnett watch the boy.
Doctors removed a part of his skull to relieve pressure on his brain.
The boy’s father said he spent the previous weekend with the grandfather and didn’t show any injuries.
By March 17, 2023, he was “unstable” and in “extremely critical condition,” Dr. Ramaiah reported. His brain pressure was unstable, despite doctors’ best efforts.
He had “neurologically devastating injuries,” she said.
The results of an eye exam — typically used to detect signs of shaken baby syndrome — were inconclusive, she said.
However, doctors wouldn’t rule out if he was shaken. His injuries would have been known, with obvious signs, like vomiting, University of Chicago Dr. Veena Ramaiah told police.
mcolias@post-trib.com