Baby Believed to Be an Abuse Victim Turns Up in Denver

An 8-month-old Huntington Beach boy, still bruised from suspected abuse, was reported in stable condition Wednesday at a Denver hospital, two days after his father allegedly took him from protective custody at the UCI Medical Center in Orange.

A physician at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center said the infant, David Kennedy Jr., was brought to the hospital at about 11:15 p.m. Tuesday by the baby’s great-grandmother, who lives in Denver.

A criminal complaint charging felony child endangerment was filed Wednesday against the father, David Kennedy Sr., 30, who is believed to be in the Denver area with his wife, Kimberlynn, 24, a Huntington Beach police spokeswoman said.

Closely Monitored

The baby was being closely monitored by UCI hospital nurses under a protective custody arrangement after his parents brought him there Friday. Upon admission, doctors had discovered multiple suspicious injuries, including bruises on much of his body, a potentially fatal subdural hematoma--or bleeding between the skull and the brain--and evidence of “long bone injuries”--broken arms and legs that were healing, police said.

The baby was removed from the hospital about 9:15 p.m. Monday during a visit by the boy’s father.

Paul Gosselin, the infant’s maternal grandfather, said by phone from Denver that the boy’s parents want to cooperate with police and that they took their son from the hospital because they were unhappy with the infant’s care.

“The child was not being fed on schedule and his diapers were not being changed,” Gosselin said.

The injured baby was taken to the UCI center because the parents were concerned that he might be suffering from a hernia, hospital officials said. The boy had been born prematurely, and the parents’ physician had advised them to watch for signs of a hernia.

After examining the baby, UCI doctors admitted him and notified social workers about the case, hospital officials said.

Custody Hold Ordered

A protective custody hold subsequently was ordered by Huntington Beach police.

Gosselin, who flew to Denver from his residence in Westminster Tuesday night, said the UCI’s hospital staff was “more interested in building a child abuse case” against the couple than in “taking care of the child.”

A hospital spokeswoman denied the family’s allegations, saying that the facility is very conscientious about nursing care, especially for babies.

Gosselin said the baby’s parents want to remain unavailable but will cooperate with police.

“They want to cooperate in every way, but they don’t want to be slammed into jail and have their baby taken away from them with no recourse to help the baby,” he said.

Police had not decided Wednesday whether to allow the couple to return to Orange County voluntarily or to try to have them picked up by police in Denver, said police spokeswoman Jo Anne Bonkowski.

The baby is now under the protection of a Colorado social services team pending a court order for his return to Orange County.

The infant was brought to Denver, Gosselin said, because the parents were afraid that if they sought additional medical care in California the baby would have been taken from them.

Gosselin declined to comment about how the couple reached Denver. He also would not reveal their whereabouts or how the baby received his injuries.

Dr. Stewart Ater, attending physician at the Denver health center, said that the infant was stable and in fair condition and had been put in protective custody.

He learned about what happened at the UCI hospital by calling there when he discovered signs of possible child abuse while treating the infant. The great-grandmother told hospital officials in Denver where the baby first had been treated but nothing more, said Lt. Dennis Powers, a UCI police officer.

“He (Ater) wanted details about the child because the great-grandmother refused to give any information as to how she had gotten possession of the infant or where the parents were,” Powers said.

Police and UCI officials said the baby’s most serious injury was an occipital subdural hematoma. UCI officials expressed joy that the child was found and placed in the care of a large medical center.

“One of our greatest fears was that the couple would take the child to a small clinic lacking proper diagnostic equipment,” Powers said.

Powers said he had been in contact with relatives of the couple in the Orange County area since early Tuesday. He had advised them to tell the couple to take the baby to a major trauma center.

A UCI hospital spokeswoman denied that nurses had acted improperly in allowing David Kennedy Sr. to visit the infant while in protective custody.

Under hospital policy, Kennedy had a right to visit with his son until 8 p.m., the normal cutoff time for relatives of babies in protective custody, said Sue Ahearn, nursing manager for pediatrics.

At the time, Kennedy had not been charged with any crime and police had not put any added restrictions on the custody, Ahearn said.

Refusing a visit, Ahearn said, “would be very presumptuous. It’s not our responsibility to find a party guilty. That’s up to the courts.”

Kennedy had apologized for staying longer than the 8 p.m. deadline, Ahearn said, and had told nurses that he was waiting for his wife to pick him up.

Normally, parents of children who are patients at the UCI hospital can stay overnight in the same room, but this is not allowed for parents of patients in protective custody.

Ahearn, who examined the baby’s feeding chart, said the infant was being attended to properly.

In addition to baby formula every three to four hours, he was eating baby cereal and fruit on schedule, she said.

“He ate like a champ,” Ahearn added.

The baby’s removal has sparked an internal investigation at the UCI center, including a detailed review of the hospital’s protective custody policy, Ahearn said.

“We are happy that the child has been found,” Powers said. “It’s a happy ending to a potential real tragedy.”