A babysitter from Ohio has been charged with assault for allegedly beating and shaking a three-year-old girl whose family says the child was left brain dead.
The Butler County Sheriff’s Office says 35-year-old Lindsay Partin was arrested on Friday in Hamilton and jailed on counts of felonious assault and endangering children.
She was arraigned on Monday morning and had her bond set at $30,000.
Caretaker arrested: Lindsay Partin (left) has been charged with assaulting three-year-old Hannah Wesche (right) and inflicting a brain injury on the toddler
Clinging to life: This photo taken at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center shows Hannah hooked up to monitors and machines
The victim, Hannah Wesche, on Thursday was taken from her caretaker’s home in Hanover Township to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, where he family said she was listed in critical condition.
Court records allege that Partin struck and shook the toddler, causing ‘serious physical harm,’ but there is no word on what might have provoked the alleged attack.
Hannah’s father, Jason Wesche, told WXIX-TV that doctors concluded the toddler was brain dead.
He tells WLWT-TV that he had been taking the girl to Partin’s home for months.
The girl’s family say she is now brain dead. They are preparing to say their goodbyes
The single father-of-three said he knew Partin through a friend and she had all the necessary credentials to look after his youngest daughter, Hannah.
According to Wesche, he got a frantic call from Partin a short time after dropping off his daughter at her house. When he rushed to the woman’s residence, he found the toddler unconscious and with a black eye.
When interviewed by police, the babysitter allegedly admitted to shaking Hannah and claimed the toddler had fallen and hit her head against a concrete garage floor the previous day.
Hannah’s family say doctors have removed a portion of the girl’s skull to relieve the swelling on her brain, but she is not expected to recover from her injuries.
‘We have to sit here and look at our dead little Hannah and just wait for these exams to tell us what we already know,’ Hannah”s aunt Megan Latham tells WLWT.
Short life: Hannah is pictured left grasping her father’s hand on the day of her birth. Jason Wesche is seen on the right holding Hannah as a toddler
The babysitter allegedly admitted to shaking Hannah and claimed the toddler had fallen and hit her head the day before
Mr Wesche has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for his daughter’s medical expenses. The page features a heartbreaking image taken at the hospital that show the little girl hooked up to monitors and other equipment, with stuffed animals in her bed.
The victim’s eldest sister, Kaitlyn Wesche, has been posting messages on Facebook asking for prayers.
‘Everyone just pray for her that she is comfortable and finds peace,’ she wrote on Sunday night. ‘Pray that she isn’t in pain and is at ease.’