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Collman v. State8/23/2000
taco shells. Stach swatted Damian on his buttocks and sent him to his room. At noon, when Collman awakened, Stach told him what Damian had done that morning. Collman called Damian over to him and asked about the incident. Damian lied and said he did not eat the gum or the taco shells; therefore, Collman swatted Damian for lying and sent him to his room.
Stach left the house at approximately 12:20 to 12:30 p.m. to do some errands. Collman, Damian, and Darian stayed at the house. According to Collman, he saw Damian go into the kitchen with the family dog following. He then heard Damian scream and a loud thud, like something hit a wall. Collman ran to the kitchen and looked down the stairs leading to the basement. He saw Damian lying at the bottom, crumpled up. Collman apparently attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on Damian, but was unable to do so because the smell of Damian's vomit made Collman feel sick.
Collman called the office of Jamie Sullivan, where he knew Stach was completing an errand. He told Sullivan to tell Stach that Damian fell down the stairs, Damian was turning blue, and she should get her "fucking ass" home immediately. Sullivan testified that Collman sounded angry on the phone. Collman failed to call 911; rather, he put on his clothes, picked up Damian, and ran outside and toward the hospital. When Stach received the message from Sullivan, she immediately drove home where she encountered Collman running in the street with Damian in his arms. All together Stach was away from the house for approximately twenty to thirty minutes. They rushed to the hospital, arriving at 12:53 p.m., and Collman told Stach that Darian was still at home alone and she should return to pick him up.
At the hospital, the medical personnel unsuccessfully attempted for thirty minutes to resuscitate Damian, who was dead on arrival. Members of the medical staff testified that Damian was non-responsive, bluish in color, and exhibited no signs of life when they began lifesaving procedures. They further testified that Damian was covered by overlapping bruises of various ages and possible bite marks. The bruises covered Damian's arms, legs, neck, face, head, abdomen, perineum (the area between the genitals and anus), rectum, penis, and testicles. Due to the amount, age, and areas of bruising, members of the medical staff testified that Damian's injuries were inconsistent with a fall down the stairs. Members of the medical staff testified that a story that the child fell down the stairs, the guardian's failure to call 911, the existence of overlapping bruises of varying ages, and inconsistency of the bruises with the guardian's story are all indicators of child abuse.
Dr. Ellen Clark, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Damian, testified that the cause of Damian's death was asphyxia leading to brain swelling, arrhythmia due to bruising around the heart, and/or multiple blunt trauma impact. She further testified that she found no bubble gum in Damian's airway. Dr. Clark explained that Damian apparently died from his body being placed in an awkward position where his knees were very forcefully and acutely bent and pulled all the way up to his chest, compressing his chest muscles. Such compression restricted Damian's breathing and disturbed the regulation of his heartbeat. This position would also leave Damian's buttocks and genital area exposed. The multiple trauma would additionally cause fat particles to break off and travel through Damian's body into his lungs and kidneys.
Dr. Clark examined and removed Damian's spinal cord and discovered that it was not injured; had it been injured, such an injury could have been consistent with a fall downstairs. D
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