Canyon Country Case : Baby-Sitter to Stand Trial in Infant’s Death

A Canyon Country baby-sitter was ordered to stand trial Tuesday in three alleged incidents of child abuse, one of which led to the death of a 6-month-old boy.

San Fernando Municipal Judge Malcolm H. Mackey ordered Vickie Maas, 27, tried on one count of murder and on one count of child endangerment in the Jan. 8 death of David Allen Duncan. He also ordered her tried on two counts of child endangerment involving two other infant boys in her care on June 24 and Aug. 17.

Maas’ attorney, Larry H. Layton, argued unsuccessfully that those two counts of child endangerment should be dismissed because the charges were not brought before David’s death.

Parents of those two infant boys testified that their children returned from Maas’ house, where she baby-sat them for a fee, with injuries--one with a broken leg and the other with bruises on his head.

“It’s an effort on the part of the prosecution to stack the deck, to say that if she did it before, then she did it again,” Layton said. “The prior investigation did not lead to any charges.”

Deputy Alex P. Sandoval of the Los Angles County Sheriff’s Department child-abuse detail testified that he brought the Aug. 17 case, involving head injuries to 6-month-old Travis Hoyt, to the attention of the district attorney’s office after David’s death.

“I did not feel there was sufficient evidence to hold anyone culpable for Travis Hoyt’s injuries,” Sandoval said. “It was a unilateral decision.”

No Knowledge of June Incident

In an interview outside the courtroom, Sandoval said he did not know about the June 24 incident in which 6-month-old Nicholas McNerney’s leg was broken.

Sandoval said that, if he had known about it, he probably would have presented information on both cases to the district attorney’s office before David died.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Pamela Davis-Springer said a report was filed with the Los Angeles County Department of Children’s Services regarding Nicholas’ broken leg, but for some reason Sandoval was not informed.

“I don’t know where the breakdown occurred,” she said.

During the two-day preliminary hearing, medical experts testified that the children’s injuries were probably caused by abuse.

Dr. Rochelle Cohen Feldman, a Newhall pediatrician, testified that David died from brain swelling caused by severe shaking and a blow to the back of the head, which probably occurred during the shaking.

Detective Cheryl Lyons of the Sheriff’s Department testified that Maas said she shook David to get him to stop crying. One of Maas’ neighbors, Shon Debra Reed, also testified that Maas said she had shaken the boy.

If Maas is convicted, she could be sentenced to 17 years to life in prison. She is free on her own recognizance.