- Sharon Arger, 59, of Airway Heights has been charged with manslaughter
- Prosecutors say she tried to blame his two-year-old brother for the child’s injuries before changing her story 16 times
- The baby was found to have injuries consistent with being “thrown from a moving vehicle,” doctors said
A Washington babysitter has been charged with the murder of a five-month-old baby who was found with a fractured skull.
Prosecutors say Sharon Arger, 59, tried to blame his two-year-old brother for the child’s injuries before changing her story a total of 16 times.
Arger, of Airway Heights, is also accused of standing still while medics performed CPR and failing to warn the baby’s parents what was happening, according to court documents obtained by KREM show.
The babysitter was home alone with the baby on November 2 when she called 911 to report an unconscious baby.
She told operators that the child’s brother hit him in the head, knocking him unconscious.
Sharon Arger, 59, has been charged with the murder of a five-month-old baby who was found with a fractured skull
Prosecutors say she tried to blame his two-year-old brother for the child’s injuries before changing her story a total of 16 times
The child was rushed to hospital, where doctors discovered evidence that ‘strongly suggested abuse had occurred’.
The baby had a fractured skull and bruising to his ear, forehead and neck consistent with being “thrown from a moving vehicle,” according to doctors who insisted there was no way a toddler could have caused so much damage.
He died on November 8, 2023 after days in the ICU, according to documents.
An autopsy revealed that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.
The baby’s mother only told police her son was in the hospital when she started receiving notifications from her home surveillance camera and saw him being taken away on a stretcher.
His father said he only received one call from Arger, but it only rang once.
When the parents arrived at the hospital shortly afterwards, they told police they had noticed no injuries before leaving for work.
The baby’s mother noticed that he had a scratch on his stomach and bruised buttocks, which she said appeared after Arger began observing him alone.
The baby was rushed to hospital, where doctors discovered evidence that ‘strongly suggested abuse had occurred’.
On Thursday, Arger was booked into the Spokane County Jail on a manslaughter charge
Before that, the baby’s father worked remotely, so he was home while Arger was in charge.
The parents told the babysitter that their son had recently become fussy due to teething and that he wanted to be held more often.
Detectives interviewed Arger and stated that she gave sixteen different explanations for what happened.
They ranged from the baby choking on his bottle of milk, to his brother ‘kicking’ him.
On Thursday, Arger was booked into the Spokane County Jail on one count of manslaughter.
Her bail was set at $1 million after lawyers urged the judge to consider the “seriousness” of the crime.
Arger will be arraigned on April 9.