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Several witnesses testified during the second day of a jury trial for a Mentone man accused of battering a child who was airlifted to a Fort Wayne hospital for their injuries.
Kaiden Eugene Meade, 21, of 506 N. Broadway St., Mentone, is charged with domestic battery to a person less than 14 years of age resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 3 felony; and obstruction of justice, a level 6 felony.
In the state of Indiana, a Level 3 felony is punishable by three to 16 years in prison, with an advisory sentence of nine years.
The state's case is being presented by Deputy Prosecutor Joseph Sobek. Meade's legal counsel is defense attorney Jay Rigdon.
There are a total of 13 jurors, including seven men and six women.
Meade's case is being heard in Kosciusko Superior Court I, with Judge Karin McGrath presiding.
Affidavit of Probable Cause
On Feb. 26, 2023, a Kosciusko County Sheriff's Office deputy responded to a report of a baby suffering injuries. Upon arrival at the scene, the deputy spoke with Meade, who said he put the child to bed and that they woke up an hour later and were fussy.
According to court documents, Meade said when he went to pick the child up, he started to drop them over a crib. When he caught the child to prevent them from falling, their neck snapped backward.
Meade went on to say the child was moving their arms differently and that their eyes looked different.
During the investigation, the deputy asked the child's mother if Meade was ever aggressive. The mother said Meade was sometimes aggressive when he was mad, but that he never took out that aggression toward the child. The deputy also asked about a hole in a bedroom door at the residence, and the mother said Meade had punched the door.
While at a hospital, Meade allegedly said he picked the child up from a crib and tripped over a baby gate in a doorway. Medical staff later advised the child would need to be airlifted to a hospital in Fort Wayne to expedite the child's treatment.
A KCSO detective interviewed a responding EMT, who said Meade told her he picked up the child and lost his grip, and that the child almost fell down into the crib. There was no mention of tripping over a baby gate when the EMT and responding KCSO deputy were getting a trauma history from Meade.
The child was admitted to the Lutheran Hospital Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Fort Wayne for a brain bleed. An assessment showed the child suffered pre-retinal, intraretinal and sub-retinal hemorrhages, and a subdural hematoma.
The diagnosis was the child's injuries were non-accidental and inconsistent with the reported history given by Meade. Riley Hospital's Child Protection Team's evaluation stated the offered traumatic history did not adequately explain the child's injuries.
During the investigation, the KCSO detective also learned of a prior incident where the child had an unexplained facial injury while in Meade's care that Meade said occurred while he was co-sleeping with the child.
Trial Proceedings
Sobek continued the state's case on Tuesday, Sept. 30, through the presentation of additional evidence.
A videotaped deposition of Amy Moss, an EMS worker, was played for the jury. Moss said the call initially came in as a report of a sick person in Mentone. She explained that the child looked alert but "stared off into space," shaking every once in a while.
Kosciusko County Sheriff's Office deputy Andrew Hochstetler, who was a corporal at the time of the incident, said the initial call was dispatched as an EMS assist. Hochstetler's body camera footage was played in court, with Hochstetler entering the residence. Meade, along with the child and two relatives, were in the home at the time. In the video, Meade could be heard saying he dropped the baby and was unsure if their neck went back.
While at the scene, Hochstetler said he contacted a detective due to concerns the child would need to be transferred to a hospital for their injuries. One of Meade's relatives said she was asleep when Meade woke her up and told her something was wrong with the baby. Hochstetler testified the relative told him Meade was picking up the baby from a Pack 'n Play when he dropped the child, but caught them.
Pictures of the bedroom where the Pack 'n Play was located, along with injuries to the child and Meade, were submitted as evidence. One of the bedroom pictures showed a hole punched into the bedroom door. Hochstetler said he was told the door's damage occurred several weeks prior to the medical call. In cross-examination, Rigdon presented an officer's narrative from Dan Buell, which stated the damage occurred one year prior to the incident. Hochstetler also noted there was a baby gate at the bedroom that had to be stepped over.
Images showing a lump on the child's forehead and marks on Meade's knuckles were also presented to the jury. Hochstetler said Meade told him the marks on his knuckles were from punching a shed following an argument with his girlfriend.
In further cross-examination, Rigdon asked Hochstetler about notes from a CAD sheet, which indicated prior to any responders arriving on scene that the baby had been shaken. He asked if it was possible there was a typing error and that it should read "shaking" instead of "shaken." Hochstetler said that was possible.
Hochstetler also said the marks on Meade's hand did not appear fresh.
The state's third witness was Tonia Smith, who worked as a part-time paramedic at the time of the incident. Prior to her arrival at the scene, Smith said it was reported that the baby was exhibiting seizure-like activity and was unresponsive. Smith completed a full assessment on the child and found them to be "very lethargic ... hard to arouse." She also described the child as having an "altered mental status" and that was her sole concern upon completing her first assessment.
Even though this was the only concern, Smith said it was enough for her to have a helicopter dispatched and diverted to meet them at Lutheran Kosciusko Hospital. When they arrived at LKH, Smith said the baby had a "profuse instance of vomiting," which she testified was indicative of a head injury.
Smith also said the baby did some jerking motions and that defibrillator pads had been placed on them, saying the child was treated as a critical patient.
"It was very clear to me we were dealing with a head injury," said Smith.
Smith testified that the child's injuries were inconsistent with what she was told had occurred. She likened the baby's injuries to ones she's seen in car or bicycle accidents, or victims of shaken baby syndrome. Smith also said if the child's head had whipped back, she would have expected to see a neck injury, but did not notice anything of the sort.
In cross-examination, Rigdon asked Smith about the possibility of the child suffering a coup-contrecoup injury, which is when back-and-forth injuries occur to the head. Smith said she didn't directly see any shaking or seizure-like activity from the child and that visible injuries usually are not seen to the naked eye when a brain injury happens.
Trial concluded for the day shortly after 11 a.m., with Sobek continuing his case at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1.
