TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Toledo police say a 4-month-old baby is in critical condition at ProMedica Toledo Hospital, after being shaken by his father.
Investigators say Averik Dominguez has bleeding on his brain, bruises on his back and broken ribs. They have charged 23-year-old Jonathan Dominguez with felonious assault.
Neighbors and friends gathered outside of the Fox Run apartments on Stirrup Drive Monday night, lighting candles and praying for Averik's recovery.
"Big brown eyes, chunky cheeks. He was just, he was a good baby. It's all a surprise to us because he was always wrapped up so good outside no matter what the weather was," said Carol Minor.
Missy Cannady said she knows the boy and his father.
"We didn't know that any of this was going on obviously. I'm a little upset that there wasn't anything that we could have done sooner. I'm hoping that he pulls through," said Cannady.
Toledo police say Jonathan Dominguez was watching his son on Sunday and shook him so violently that Averik is in the ICU.
Police don't believe the father's claims that he shook the baby because he had stopped breathing during a bath. Police say the boy's mother was at work when it happened.
Captain Wes Bombrys provided information about the case, and says it's disturbing.
"You have a defenseless 4-month-old child. I can't think of one reason why anybody would shake a child that violently. There is absolutely no reason for that," said Bombrys.
Dominguez is in the Lucas County Jail on $500,000 bond. Police say he was already wanted on a domestic violence warrant for punching his own mother and pulling her hair during an incident in 2008.
Lucas County Children Services is also investigating the case at the apartment. Executive Director Dean Sparks says his office sees two to three cases each year of shaken baby syndrome, which result in serious injuries.
"It is just such devastation, and these parents, they react to a moment of stress. I don't think I have ever met a parent who set out to say, 'Well I am going to shake my baby and harm them,'" Sparks said.
Sparks has advice for any parent caught in a similar situation, they should simply put the baby down and walk away until they cool off.
"But one is too many. This is the most preventable form of injury to children that there is," Sparks said.
A grand jury indicted Jonathan Dominguez on child endangering charges for the suspected shaking of his 4-month-old son, Averik Dominguez on Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2011.
