Killer British Nanny | Is Shaken Baby Syndrome Pseudoscience? | Louise Woodward Case Analysis
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ม.ค. 2022
- This video answers the question: Can I analyze the case of Louise Woodward? Is “Shaken Baby Syndrome” pseudoscience?
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This hits close to home. My best friend in the 80's did daycare in her home and stayed home to care for her own boys. One day she put one of the 4 mos. old daycare children down for a nap. After an hour she went to wake the children and the baby was dead. She was accused of "shaken baby syndrome" and charged with involuntary manslaughter. However, it was found that at the age of 6 weeks the baby had quit breathing at home and the doctors were afraid it was a SIDS warning. The baby had been on a monitor for about a month. My friend had never been made aware of this when she began caring for the child at 4 months. The charges were dropped. She never got over it. She quit doing daycare. She was a wonderful mother to her two young boys and loved children. We always used to babysit each other's children at times She would never do it again. So sad. She had severe depression and her life was nearly ruined over it for a long time.
Hi, I'm sorry about your friend.
My family experienced a SIDS death at 4 months.
Since that time, while there has been research, SIDS deaths are still a mystery.
Although it has been 30 years, your comment is enough to trigger sadness and tears.
I think of what could have been.
Take care
@@bsqwahlE My heart aches for you. So very sad. Yes SIDS is still a mystery and I know much research has been done on it but with still no definitive answer. I'm sorry to cause sorrow for you!
I think more awareness of SIDs is important! Because no experiments can be done, it must be hard to study this terrible tragedy! Thank you two for your stories and sorry for your pain!😓
Terrifying business for her.
Hey! eb! Proof of sympathetic human felling! Awright!
As a parent myself there is absolutely no way I would employ a teenager with no previous child care experience and no appropriate qualifications to care for my children. The parents could have afforded a proper nanny or registered nursery places and a cleaner instead of paying an overseas student a literal pittance to try and carry out all those roles.
I agree but I don’t like to blame the parents. The mother was criticized for working because she didn’t need to. Poor women are told that they’re wrong to have children at all and if they do it doesn’t matter who they leave their children with. But then they’re attacked again if they have to work three jobs like my sister does. My sister has a college degree by the way.
A lot of parents say this but it's a recent change. I'm 51 and I started babysitting and "mother's helper" jobs when I was 13.. It was normal back then...not saying it was right by any means but it was considered normal during that time, , like metal jungle gyms with concrete underneath instead of rubber scraps.
They should have sacked her after the ultimatum. Actually, no ultimatum was required; it was clear she was unsuitable and replacement was the logical option. They were probably attempting to be nice and they can hardly be blamed but she was not right for the position.
Also worth having cameras in the home. If the ethics are bothersome, inform the sitter that the cameras are there.
This all could have been avoided if the parents included "Do not kill the baby" in that thing she had to sign. Probably just a big misunderstanding.
It is no pittance to hire an aupair. She did not take her responsibility seriously & hiring a nanny or nurse etc is no guarantee one's child is safe from harm.
The question remains: ‘Who caused the prior injuries to the child?’ As he had suffered a skull fracture why didn’t the parents notice he had concussion, since they were physicians? Had no one suspected the parents or thought that the nanny might have hurt him before? It seems to me that no justice has occurred for this baby. Moreover Louise was not a trained nanny and she was very young and left to care for a baby. This is irresponsible behaviour on the part of the parents.
The child could have bumped his head, fell down, etc. At that age, injuries like this can easily go unnoticed. Sometimes they seem fine, after an injury. It may not have been intentional.
Some young people can be excellent child care workers. Louise just wasn't one of them.
U know what I change my post I could be judging wrong I'm sorry I wasn't there when everything happened and I'm wrong for that I'm sorry
They were nice people! The nanny was also paid very well! If it was too much work, she could have quit instead of shoving the baby to death! What is wrong with people?
@@waitaminute2015 she wasn't a nannie she was an au pair, basically a glorified baby sitter & house made. They are cheaper than nannies, less experienced, and a lot cheaper than paying for a nannie/day care as well as a house hold maid. Also there's no proof that she shook the baby, but as she was inexperienced the baby could easily have banged his head, hurt himself, or had an infection and her not to have noticed. Or someone else could have knocked him, we will never know. More experience can definetly go a long way in child safety though.
I believe the previous injuries were in his wrists, they were old & healed, they may have happened before she even went to the house. Nobody knows how he got them, maybe someone hurt him, maybe it was an accident. As to his head injury, there were no other injuries or brushing that you might expect if a child was shaken, it may have happened up to three weeks before, & as repeated in this video but first stated by Patrick Barnes, a paediatric radiologist at Stanford University, & a key prosecution witness in the trial; there has been a revolution in the understanding of head injuries in the past decade, partly due to advances in MRI brain scanning technology: "We started realizing there were a number of medical conditions that can affect a baby's brain and look like the findings that we used to attribute to shaken baby syndrome or child abuse", such as infections and in utero strokes.. So maybe someone hurt him, but we can't proove who or how, & we don't want to sentence to life the wrong person. Or maybe nobody hurt him.
I remember this case. A couple of my friends decided to stay at home and raise their kiddos after this case.
I was training to be a nursery nurses hen this happened. People I know including myself that had wanted to be au pairs changed our minds.
Shaken baby syndrome is a VACCINE INJURY.
All au pairs are INNOCENT.
The only problem with this case is the LAW and BIG PHARMA.
Useless, incorrect diagnosis.
@@kevinkascolinkeithtimghera4305 lol cool story bro
Hell sometimes it costs just as much as someone makes full time to pay someone or some place to watch your kid. So you’re working to pay the fees. Id prefer one parent stay at home, whichever parent makes less money or whichever parent is patient enough to raise the child full time. Because it isn’t just a 9-5 being a homemaker. It’s a 24 hour job 7 days a week.
Then how come it can happen to babies that aren’t vaccinated too or well before they have their first vaccines. “Big pharma” is a useless and weird argument as in the rest of the world we have universal healthcare so no one is making personal profit selling medication or vaccines to doctors or patients. I pay £20 per month for literally any healthcare I need including prescriptions. Your only problem with vaccines and your entire healthcare system is that you have to pay extortionately for everything.
This is such a sad case. This case, among other similar ones, is the reason why I would only feel comfortable with a childcare provider who is more than ok with cameras in the home. It can protect both parties.
I feel more comfortable *as* a childcare provider with there being cameras in the home. You're so totally right.
Very true! I once had my entire career as a nanny saved by a camera, little man slipped/tripped on a toy and took a header into the brick fireplace mantel - I was so close to catching him : ( I immediately called his mother while we headed to the hospital, she met us there with the evidence that I had done nothing wrong because the ER doctors had accused me of throwing him into a wall. I had never been so devastated in my entire career as a nanny to be accused of child abuse, I was ridiculously grateful for that video cam and his mom willingness to bring it up to the ER immediately to prove to all that it was an accident! I stayed with that family for two more years saw him into kindergarten, I still babysit for them occasionally! Best nanny parents ever, they totally had my back and so did the camera cause I never did anything wrong, without the camera I could've gone to prison or been blacklisted in my field of work!
@@blowitoutyourcunt7675 gosh, I'm glad you & little guy were alright! That must have been absolutely terrifying, thank goodness for cameras :(
From what I can remember is that they employed a very young woman with zero experience apart from a bit of babysitting and gave her way too much responsibility as I'm sure they also expected housekeeping duties as well. Even if those were just light they were paying a young girl to do way too much so they could save money.
Agreed. Trust me I know how expensive it is to put kids through daycare (I did it twice). But it's one of those things that you cannot do on the cheap without sacrificing safety. For me, safety was the most important. With that being said, an expensive provider does not guarantee safety. It all comes down to the person / establishment. Take time to research, check references, and trust your gut. If something seems off it's because IT IS.
@@nbrown8386 I agree. While some young people are fully capable of caring for two children, some are NOT. You really have to do your homework and check out as much as information you can, before hiring a childcare provider. It's the most important decision you can make. I don't think it's as easy to get reliable information about someone you're hiring from another country. I know few people who did it, and it worked out great for everyone. My cousin hired an Irish nanny, and she ended up marrying that cousin's brother! Now, she's family and babysits for free!
She was paid well and came from a service that provided nannys . Stop blaming the victim, they were nice people.
I have no comment on the parents' choice. Lots of people hire au pairs, nannies etc. Yes, some au pairs and child caregivers are not very good or downright bad. On balance, most of them will be good enough to take care of the children without problems.
I believe what is really a problem is the concept that child care should be the sole responsibility of parents (particularly the mother). Providing support to new parents is essential and some of that support involves making other ways to care for the baby available, particularly difficult-to-soothe babies and/or babies with medical problems that require additional care. Families do better if they have additional carers for babies, whether that's daycare, nannies, or extended families. Yes, parents are the primary caregivers, but why do we think that it is appropriate to blame people and say they don't "deserve" children if they can't handle the intensive caregiving? That's just not reasonable. For all intents and purposes, anyone can have a child: it is very much the default and has years of evolutionary drives dedicated to its occurring which will always override any rational thought (at the population level and over time, that is). It pushes vulnerable mothers (and fathers, but most caregiving still falls on women) who could have managed with help into incredibly negative mental health states and then they get further blamed for not being "good" or "ideal" parents. smh.
@@kathrynturnbull990 Very well said. Thank you. Your comment should be a 'stand alone' comment, not a reply. It could change some people's point of view.
Dr Grande, it's called a subDURAL haematoma. Subdermal just means under the skin. Subdural means under the protective coverings of the brain.
As a career nanny who's replaced *many* untrained, inexperienced and dangerously ignorant au pairs, I can tell you that it's easy for a young woman who has *no training* nor bond with family/baby (nor shared language w the parents often) to become frustrated and aggressively squeeze or lightly shake a baby, aggravatedly drop them on a soft surface, think it's okay to leave then alone in a tub, not chop food small enough etc etc. I do believe she should've served 5 yrs for manslaughter, she did not intend to injury or cause death but is culpable as his caregiver. Her served time was not sufficient for the life she failed to safeguard!
If you hire childcare - demand references AND followup on them! If they aren't CPR/First Aid certified (get them or make a hard pass), look for someone older with years of experience and if possible any education in Early Childhood Development!
As I sit here with my wee little charge doing tummy time, I know there is nothing she can do to frustrated me enough to think about harming her! The best tool a caregiver can utilize is knowledge of self and when to put baby in a safe spot and walk away for a moment to gather themselves!
Cheers all
Edit - Check out the 60 Minutes episide, it stated that the au-pair agency "rigorously" trained these young women for *4 whole days* before deeming responsible to go halfway around the world and be a caregiver to babies and toddlers. They did not state if they were trained with real toddlers and babies or if it was all book work : |
Thank you. The child died in her care. She is culpable. She needed jail time and/or an ass-whooping.
Self Knowledge, your so right.
My goodness, what a username for a career nanny!
I'm sure I wouldn't trust my child with someone with the user name BlowItOutYourCunt! You sound like your talking in the third person, describing what you are like with other peoples children and had to be replaced numerous times by more professional child carers.
@@gailmiler2797 omg 😆 I just noticed that
I see a lot of comments from parents here who say that these types of cases are precisely the reason that they would stay home with their kids and not a hire a nanny. Of course it's totally fine to make that choice, but I'd like to remind people that in the VAST majority of cases where a child is hurt or even killed, the perpetrator is one of the parents or another family member. Cases where a nanny or other childcare provider is at fault are *extremely* rare.
Certainly, it would always be safer and smarter to hire someone with childcare experience, CPR certificates etc., not an inexperienced teenager. But to extrapolate from one of these VERY RARE cases to say that you can't trust any nanny or childcare provider with your child is ludicrous. Most nannies and people working at daycares have waayyyy more experience with children and more safety training than the average parent. In fact, a ton of parents don't know what the hell they're doing when they have the first baby. Just somethin' to think about.
Yes, but we're not talking about cases of child abuse by parents. We're talking about non-abusive parents who hire nannies who then hurt their children. These really are separate issues.
Yes, and this is another case where the perpetrator was the parent, and not the au pair.
So... don't stay home with your kids, because you are the most likely person to hurt them.
You must be in the child care buisness as you are trying to make a strong case for childcare.
It's all very well stating alot of daycare and in home nannies are less likely to kill a child due to rough handling,neglect or injury etc.but both nannies and parents do kill children whether accidently or deliberately.
It is usually in the child's interest to be with its mother in the crucial early years .I personally don't believe in trusting strangers with infants.If you cannot afford to stay home and raise your child until school age don't have them.There is always a risk entrusting strangers with an innocent baby .They have no emotional bond to put that baby before themselves.
I don't think the teenager did it due to the past injuries which were either not noticed or ignored by the parents.Both of whom were medically qualified I believe.
@@lilacollamore4510 I'm inclined to agree.The past injuries that were either ignored or not noticed by medical professionals points to at the very least rough handling .Also having money bur not hiring someone more qualified and experienced to take care of an infant.Also they were well off she should of been raising the baby ...I'd she cared enough.
I think the teenager was the ' scapegoat ' the ' fall guy'
I've been talking with someone her who without much thought claims because her she is ' from the area' and the parents were ' nice ' it must have been the teenager from England.
So glad that they were on the jury.
Thank you for your amazing videos and your guidance on life. I am relatively recently, 100% disabled from three massive strokes from a medication error. My profession was writing federal grants. I have an MBA which have lost the ability to type, which makes life challenging. You are so inspirational and I love listening to your videos. I've been watching you for quite some time and I had no idea you were disabled. Of course it does not matter, but I think it makes you much more compassionate to those who are. I greatly appreciate you.
Catherine - You sound as though you are taking life as it comes with pretty good outlook! I give you a lot of credit and hope that every day brings you confirmation that this is a worthwhile view!💐🌷💮🌹🌺
Congratulations on one million. I’m so happy for you!
It's very much deserved. He's great about analyzing all sides of each true crime case he looks into and his commentary is always fair and unbiased.
I appreciate this analysis so much. So many people don't know about shaken baby syndrome being challenged as the only diagnosis for the three symptoms. I appreciate you bringing it to the attention of more people. I also appreciate you explaining that even if this girl did harm the child it was most likely without malice or forethought and therefore doesn't deserve such a harsh punishment.
Maybe it should stop being called smaken baby syndrome but just simply abuse Many people think that it's just a person who suddenly got lost their temper and shook the baby (sure there are those cases) when in many cases it's not just about shaking but hitting, slapping and often not even the first time the baby has been abused.
I have noticed how so very sincere and appreciative Dr. Grande is every time he says, “Thanks for watching.”
His "Thank you for milestone videos" are equally sincere and humble! This man is salt of the earth!
This is the sort of thing that gives me nightmares, I have a disabled son and he'll need lifelong care, he'll always be with me but I'll always need help. I'm glad the agencies we work with have background checks and abuse prevention training but I'll always always always worry.
That is what true parental commitment and love sounds like! Too often lacking!
Place cameras everywhere, and say nothing about them.
This is such a difficult situation for parents in your place. My heart goes out to you. 🙏
Louise didn't kill the baby though. Likely his older brother injured him weeks before he died.
except that's against the law. @@maxr.mamint8580
I remember how popular this story was in the news as it unfolded. The first thing that came to mind was how a professional couple would hire someone so immature. And I am certainly not blaming them; but, they knew almost immediately she was very irresponsible.
Nonetheless, I wasn’t aware that Shaken Baby Syndrome was a questionable diagnosis. This case wasn’t the first I have heard of, just the most popular.
I blame them. They should have hired a REAL nanny, the expensive kind that you pay $45k a year plus benefits. They could afford it.
@@ladymonacoofthebluepacific2571 maybe she needed the job and they were kind and gave it to her. You don't know the whole story. What we know is the baby is gone and its her fault.
I agree she should have been let go. But I honestly doubt the parents could have foreseen murder. I don't blame them. Hiring nannies from abroad is still popular. Would I do it? Nope. I was a stay at home mom. The only person who could watch my child were her grandparents. But at that time there were agencies that handled it. The may have thought they were getting Mary Poppins.
@@sunnysun3740 they had all the red flags but decided it's ok, it was their baby and they left him in a dangerous situation, it's their fault too as parents and protectors.
Childcare for infants in MA is breathtakingly expensive. They probably thought that this was a safe and less-expensive alternative to daycare. Sometimes it's difficult to.even get a spot for your infant there, nevermind the insane cost. Obviously in hindsight they should not have economized on childcare but at the time it probably seemed like a reasonable choice. I believe they hired her via an agency if memory serves me.
What worries me about this case is that there doesn't seem to have been a real investigation into Matthew's prior injuries. I would want to discover how old these injuries were. .
injuries were 6 weeks old and louise worked for the family for 2 months
@@hollystiener16 oh dear that's no help it just " thickens the plot" .I think shaken baby syndrome he dies the second time .they had told her off threatened to fire her and she took it out on the baby.
I remember this case ,she looked off,unconcerned smirking.
Part of the blame is the cheapskate parents handing the care of an infant to an unqualified teenager
@@anaseijas3923 I'm not a victim of anything.
The fractures both had the same age, putting them in mid-January with the suggestion that they happened at the same time. I think it's likely that one of the three adults knew about a fall or other incident, but rationalized it away at the time by observing that Matthew seemed fine. But he wasn't fine. Whoever it was kept their mouth shut, because when the doctors found out about Matthew's fractures, the wheels of justice were already turning, and whoever owned up would surely go to prison.
the injuries were about 3 weeks old, including a fractured skull that was mending, and a previously broken wrist. There has been some investigation now. They believe the older kid brother caused them. Louise was just a scapegoat, sadly.
What I always remember is the inappropriate reaction of her supporters, back in the UK. Their Triumphant reaction forgot that a childs life had been lost.
More proof of immaturity!
One of their own, who was also young and female, had triumphed over the extremely formidable American system.
I'm in the UK. It was just her family and friends that behaved like that...I seem to recall they put yellow ribbons everywhere.
@@bthomson An entire nation? SMH.
This case was all over the news in MA when I was growing up. It scared me. I'm not sure if it's why I eventually decided to stay home with my own kids but it probably contributed.
Yeah I just put up a comment elsewhere, I grew up on the Cape, and I remember this case acutely. My grandparents lived in Hull, across the water from Boston, and I was up there visiting the night before she was supposed to be sentenced (the initial sentence.) There was a terrible storm late that night, very loud thunder, and I was in my grandparents' house thinking about how Woodward, who was being held not far away, could very likely hear the thunder as well. I'm certain she did. I don't see how she couldn't. I always remember that.
Her and I are almost the exact same age, and I remember wondering what it must have felt like to be a foreigner in a land where you're on trial for murder. I also felt empathy for the Eappen parents. If I remember correctly, the father practiced at Brigham and Women's, where I also had doctors. Little connections like that made this case very relevant to me.
I will say though, the subsequent revisions about "shaken baby syndrome" leave me unsettled. A murdered baby is unimaginable, but so is someone being wrongly convicted of a murder they didn't commit. They're both represent loss of life. Lots of things to reflect on here.
I miss New England. Take care up there. :)
@@mcnultyssobercompanion6372 I don’t know much about this case except what I just heard from Dr grande, and it is awful when people are wrongly convicted, but from what I heard my opinion is so far that he was in her care, she claims to have flopped him on the bed but let’s be real, she’s not going to admit to being tough with him since he died, she’s going to downplay it like most people who are afraid they’ve done something wrong would. So from what I know of it at this point my gut is siding with her being the cause or at least the exasperation of the poor child’s death. It’s just awful all around.
@@HeatherHolt Well said, and I agree, for the most part. I'm pretty certain she was responsible for this. It's what I believe in my gut.
I strive to objective as much as possible, and so the subsequent revisions about "shaken baby syndrome" I think will always leave me with a bit of lingering doubt; as Dr. Grande says at the end, one of the expert witnesses states he would not testify today as he did then. That rattles me a bit. If a person's guilt is as stake.
Still....I *believe* she likely did it. I don't know that she did. I can't be certain 100%. But I believe she did. It's likely. Unfortunately.
@@HeatherHolt No she said she "popped " him on the bed. In England this means placed or put.
Eg, I'll pop around. I popped a biscuit in my mouth. Etc.
The American Prosecutors and jurors misunderstood her words.
English spoken by an English person can be very different from American usage.
She is certainly not going to say she slammed him on the bed. She did a great job softening what she did with the particular words she used. I believe she was extremely rough with him and it killed him. She shouldn't have gotten off so easily.
It happened to my friends baby. He's permanently disabled. Was perfectly healthy. Daycare worker shook him. Now he's brain damaged.
Horrible. I was on vacation to Hershey PA and became acquainted with a family with a 4 year old in a reclining wheelchair. He also had been the victim of being a shaken baby. He was declining and was not supposed to live much longer. it was one of the saddest things i have ever seen.
So sad!
I am astonished at all the comments re. "Why did they not raise their own children" and "Why did they have children if they didn't want to be with them 24/7". In my opinion the question is: why didn't they have 'the talk' with her after one week of such work performance; and why did they not send her packing after 2 weeks?
I had the same reaction. No question two incomes are probably the norm in many countries, these days. Agreed, that nanny should have been fired long before this incident. Perhaps whatever the prior injuries the child suffered would never have happened, either. I bet the parents think the same way, in hindsight. Such a tragedy for the boy and the family.
Well, chilren with such constant babycare create bonds with nannies, not parents, imo it's okay of course to work, but if you have a kid of that age at least try to be them more, get a break from work or just hire a normal nanny, not a girl who didn't expected to be working with a little child, she was a teen and it's pretty normal to have some anger problems at that age, summ that with crying baby you don't feel attached to and who is annoying as hell, while his parents try to control your every move, it's a matter of time when traumas happen as it doesn't take much to hurt a child with how thin their bones and how weak their muscles are..
@@melodi996 I agree, this was not the right nanny for the children. The parents hire the nannies, usually from an agency, in the nannies home country. The agency's job is to vet the nannies, make sure they are capable and fit for the job, do background checks, some train the nannies. They make recommendations to the parents and the nannies. So, the family believes they are hiring a good Nannie. The nanny knows they will be taking care of the kids. In this case, it was a bad fit. Maybe the girl thought she wanted to be a nanny, but once she got there, she didn't. The parents weren't satisfied with her, either. Right away, they should have sent her home, and got another babysitter. The nanny should, I think, should take care of the children while the parents are working. Then, the parents can take over. The nanny shouldn't be taking the place of the parents. They aren't servants, after all. This was a bad match for everyone, especially the little boy. May he RIP.
@@melodi996, the parents come home every day from work and spend time with the children. Ditto the weekend.
@@LDiamondz She wasn't a Nanny she was an Au Pair
Thank you for pointing out that “popped Mattie on the bed” means something innocuous in British English! It really angered me, during the trial (which I watched from the beginning of the reporting to the verdict, then whatever coverage was given to the judge’s decision), that “popped” was regarded as something sinister and that no one pointed this out. I was also uncomfortable with the parents. It made me wonder: exactly when did the baby get those injuries? Was the culprit Louise or Sunny or Deborah? As the parents were doctors, they got a pass; they were above suspicion. Since Louise was a wayward teen, the spotlight was always on her alone. But she was only there some of the time, and the parents were there the rest of the time. Being on the phone for an hour or seeing RENT ~30+/- times is evidence of her being a teenager, not a murderess.
As to the smile and laugh that reflected badly upon Louise, I’ve had that same reaction at times. When my Bubbie - my father’s mother - died and we heard the news of her death, I smiled a wide smile and it disturbed me a lot, but I couldn’t stop smiling. I loved Bubbie, but I smiled like a maniac and I was unable to stop! That was 51 years ago, and it still bothers me.
I thought one of the other kids whacked him on the head.
There are a lot of holes in the story, and I completely agree that differences in language must be taken into account in these cases.
Yes! Based on reading the comments here it seems like this went over some viewers head even after the video. The jury couldn't make a verdict "beyond reasonable doubt" the old injuries could've been inflicted by someone else. Being a teenager isn't a crime last time I checked. We will never know the truth and it's sad that the poor baby lost his life but I understand why she couldn't be sentenced for murder.
I smile and laugh when I'm nervous, even if it's a situation in which I hadn't done anything.
Laughing can be involuntary. Maybe you would like to check out pseudobulbar affect. It is a disorder in which one cannot control whether one is laughing or crying. I can imagine that you felt disturbed about that but it is not your fault, it is just something that can happen and it does not say anything about you personally.
There is a recent case about a babysitter charged with the death of a 5 year old.
Her parents were aware of mistreatment when the older sister told them babysitter was hurting her brother.
They put up nanny cams and kept her employed.
The 5 year old died of internal injuries to nearly every organ.
PARENTS: Do not trust people who don't respect the job just because you may like the person or you don't want them out of a job. Your children's lives aren't worth a good deed.....
Ikr, that babysitter looks like a sketchy, stripper club type. They also need fresh eyes to look at the dad in that case.
@@rullmourn1142 mist people at clubs or even strippers would likely take care of kids better...including their own than these creeps.
Idk what I would do if I saw or even thought someone watching my child had hurt my child. In any way. If I was told or had any suspicion that would be enough to let them go but if I had proof?? Idk, it would be hard not to snap in some way, I’ll be honest. I don’t think anyone could say for certain they wouldn’t react in some way.
Well how did the baby still die if they had cameras up? Do she kill it the very next attack?
@@eadweard. They probably didn't tell her there were cameras. I know it's stupid, they should have fired her on the spot, but it seems like that's what they did.
I remember at the time of the case it was mentioned that the baby had a broken arm as an earlier injury. I was living in the UK and the case was all over the media. The report stated that the baby would have been in a great deal of pain, especially if it was picked up. It made me wonder how two doctors in the house could have missed that, unless they had little to no interaction with the child.
I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case. The doctors that I've met are not exactly the best parents out there. They're kinda neglectful with their kids in many ways. And I guess that was what happened here too. There's no way that a responsible parent would be ok leaving their kids under the care of a teenager that has already demonstrated to be irresponsible.
It wasn't a full break. It was a "green stick" fracture of the very end of the right radius. It's what you'd get if you fell forward and put out your hand to break your fall, but the force was just about too much.
As a Bostonian I remember this when it happened and thinking this kid shouldn’t have been taking care of a kid for that long of a time per day
The judge's decision may have been in part due to "what were those parents thinking?"
The Au Pair program is inherently exploitative. The young women who apply are promised a cultural exchange experience as part of a "host family", but when they arrive they're treated as "the help" and expected to work over 40 hours a week for less than minimum wage.
The term "au pair" translates as "in tandem" or "equal to". The post-WWII program was initially intended to place young women as household help for middle class SAHMs, in lieu of the domestic servants which had become hard to find. The name au pair was supposed to emphasize that this was NOT an employee, but rather the guest of a host family, who was expected to "pitch in" with the childcare, to prepare for her own future role as a wife and mother. She was not expected to be left by herself to care for the children while the mother held down a full time job.
@@astrinymris9953 It's almost like slavery. The Financial Diet said she knew a Paris Au Pair who was essentially held hostage by her host family and had to be rescued in the night secretly.
@@astrinymris9953 that nanny was paid well. I worked in Newton at the time and knew several nannys. The only blame here is the abuser who killed a baby.
@@astrinymris9953 yes, absolutely. Many parents use Au Pairs because they tend to be young and therefore easier to control (especially if you make them live in your home). I'm not saying this was the case with these parents here, cause I don't know the facts: I'm basing it on the experiences of all my friends (and friends of friends) who had experience being au pairs. Any child caregiver with more experience would probably not put up with the conditions and would be able to find a situation where they were not treated like an indentured servant. It's the same reason that undocumented immigrant women tend to fulfill this same role in the U.S....not that they are young, but they have so few options for working that they are very much at the mercy of the family.
I too remember this case. I was disturbed when her punishment was 279 days. However, after listening to your Analysis, I've learned a lot. I respect Dr. Badens opinion. I had no idea there had been prior injuries. Thanks for putting this story into perspective. I never heard about any of the Jurys dilemmas Now after listening to your invaluable information, I believe that she did receive the proper sentence. Thanks, Dr. Grande. Excellent as usual. 👌
One thing that bothered me when I was watching a documentary about this case back in high school law class is that why would the parents allow someone whom they are not on good terms with to watch their baby. Unlike older kids, babies cannot defend themselves or speak for themselves. They could hire someone more reliable.
@@mjin1223 that’s exactly what I was thinking to myself. Like, there wouldn’t even be a warning. Once there’s a warrant for a warning you should be fired already. I feel like when it comes to child care, you don’t need another chance.
I think the prior injuries were done by the babysitter too.really don’t think I would have let her around my children. Do you remember the mother leaving the court room & saying “she will face a higher court someday and then (son’s name) will have justice.”
I am surprised that people hire high school kids who are taking gap years, to look after their children.
When exactly did a year off from school become something called a gap year?
That was the era it was very normal then..
"She was frequently late for work."
Remember that she lived in the same house as these people. That tells you what kind of person she was.
That's what I was thinking.
How could she be late? Why didn't the parents go to her room and get her butt out of bed?
@@bsqwahlE yeah she probably wasn’t home is what that meant. Idk that’s what i get from it.
She was a teenager taking a gap year between high school and college. She wasn't whatever kind of person you're implying. She was a kid who wanted to have fun and clearly wasn't mature enough for the job.
@@ay9979 Immature doesn't mean beating up an infant.
@@markthomas6703 yes. It can in fact mean beating up an infant or making just about any incorrect decision. Maturity isn't just knowing what is right and wrong. It's the ability to regulate your emotions in stressful situations and control your impulses.
Why some parents think it is okay to leave their baby in the care of an inexperienced teenager blows my mind.
Thats like normal. You dont need a certified adult nanny professional with a masters in daycare
Something is clearly wrong with people like you. And the worst, is your kids are the ones who suffer. Having a helicopter overprotective parent leads to many issues in kids and future adults
@@artyomarty391 🤣🤣🤣 You obviously don't have a baby!!
@@ArgueMe you obviously dont have a babysitter
@Artyom Arty No... but I do have 3 teenagers.
If I remember correctly, she actually said she “chucked” him in his bed and this caused a lot of issues as the American use of the word chucked implies a much more violent act than the more flippant and colloquial British use. I always found that to be an interesting point in this case. Regardless, she was clearly not fit to be caring for children and I have met many parents hesitant to hire help because of her while I was working as an au pair myself.
I have a feeling she might have said "popped"? There was a pretty deep dive into this on the Red Handed podcast Episode 131 - Louise Woodward & Shaken Baby Syndrome.
No, she said “popped.”
Ah, yes. It was “popped.” Thanks for correcting me! I feel like it still holds the same difference between regions as chucked does, and maybe popped is even more innocuous. Either way, still an interesting point in the case!
God Bless you; keep calm & Gentle with Little Ones..
@@carolnahigian9518 always! I’m still a nanny now, just back at home in my own city. Children are my whole world and I hope to go back to school this spring to get into social work. I want to be an advocate for those who can’t advocate for themselves.
The mother was painted by the defense as a neglectful mother for having the audacity to want and have a career. It was vulgar to witness. I hope the parents eventually found some measure of peace.
Well she didn’t care about her kid, stop being a simp
Is not raising your own children not neglectful?
When two parents are professionals, there is a dynamic created that may be problematic! They want a child! Neither parent is maybe willing to give up their job! So hire someone competent! Carefully vetted and MATURE!
@@bthomson Yes & with cameras
@@eadweard. of course it isn't.
I'm almost the exact same age as Woodward. I remember the night before she was sentenced I was staying at my grandparents' house in Hull MA, which is right across the water from where she was being held in Boston. There was a terrible storm that night that kept me awake, and I remember wondering whether she could hear the exact thunder I was. Given what was at stake, she was surely not sleeping either.
I'll always remember that.
This was so upsetting! She got away with murder. She was supposed to spend life in prison for murdering that sweet baby. Thanks Doc for sharing.
Having worked for a retinal specialty practice with 3 pediatric specialists in the Detroit area, I can assure you that SBS is real, and much more prevelent than one can even imagine.
Shaking also occurs with abuse of children who can suffer brain and whiplash-associated disorders that can also manifest years later as Vertebral-Basillary Insufficiency or torn ligaments in the neck, alar/transverse ligaments to skull, atonic seizures, TIA's, drop attacks, requiring sometimes brain decompression and neck surgery. I know as I am one such patient with anomalous helixing verteral arteries from one such shaking attack, at age 4.
Oh, it's definitely real. It just wasn't part of Matthew Eappen's pathology. The autopsy ruled it out; but until that point, the doctors believed that Matthew had been violently shaken. The doctors believed that because they thought the police had done an independent investigation and established it. Meanwhile, the police had done no such investigation; they just assumed that the doctors knew best when they originally diagnosed Matthew with SBS. The original diagnosis was done on the basis of a medical error, i.e. Dr Mandel decided to skip the X-ray and he just assumed that Matthew had no skull fracture, and therefore no external head trauma. By the time the doctors did a skeletal survey, the police had come back with the story "we talked to the babysitter and she admitted shaking the baby" which sounded like "she confessed to violently shaking the baby".
This was such a huge case, over here in the UK and although I understand everything that happened legally etc, I just have to ask: if the injuries weren’t sustained at the time they were claimed by the prosecution (which I happen to agree with BTW) when were they sustained?
What I mean is, if I stole something from you and you accuse me of stealing it on, say, Wednesday and it was proved that I could not have robbed you on Wednesday but I DID steal it on Monday, then, at the end of the day, it’s still stolen, yeah?!
So if, we are to understand that the baby wasn’t harmed on the day Louise Woodward phoned 911 (which, as I say, I’m quite happy with) then WHEN exactly was it the baby WAS harmed?
Because, at the end of the day, SOMETHING happened to that baby…
Yes I agree with this but it would have been impossible to ascertain when and how the original injuries occurred let alone who is responsible. I believe the Defence suggested Matthew's parents were responsible. If the police and prosecution had accepted that shaken baby syndrome is a false science, they would not have been able to bring charges against anyone but because there was a dead baby they desperately wanted to charge and punish someone.
Agreed, the nanny probably caused the prior injuries. Sad case.
I agree 💯 and based on the evidence I think she was responsible for the prior injury. Just bc her actions that day may not have killed Matthew, doesn't mean her actions 2 weeks before (or whenever) were of no significance. The problem is PROOF. Matthew was too young to tell anyone he was being mistreated.
Exactly my point! Some adult hurt that child. That’s for sure. But who and when?
So far as I remember some of the old injuries had healed and she couldn't have caused them because she wasn't working for the Eappens whe some of them occurred.
Who gets “rough” with a baby? She deserved a few years even for that. I think these parents were too cheap or too in a rush when hiring a nanny. They should’ve hired an older, more experienced person from the start, or at least fired Louise long before this incident. Only conscientious people should be allowed to care for children, and Louise was a mess.
To be fair on looking at many that get hired that are abusive one way or another to kids do have ways of manipulation, deceptions, and records that seem clean of doing harm to others when looking them up...then they get caught doing harm or murder.
@@Chamelionroses If I absolutely had to hire a nanny, I would only hire a more experienced one, I would install cameras in the house (perhaps this wasn’t as easy back in the 90s), and I would try to wait until my kid(s) were old enough to tell a brief story from beginning to end before taking a chance on a younger or less-experienced nanny.
This is why I chose group daycare. Experienced teachers, no one is ever alone, all 3/4 walls between classrooms. And big windows left unshaded except for nap time.
Honestly, I don’t think she knew what happened. But asking a 19 to single-handedly provide full time care to 2 babies? That seems like a bad decision.
Most of these nannies work more as mother’s helpers and in-house babysitters.
You're being a little harsh and unempathetic here. Plenty of people harm babies and usually it's in a way similar to this where it isn't malicious. It's a result of immaturity and poor regulation of emotion and impulses. When things like this happen it's often a mistake and sending someone to prison for years isn't going to fix that mistake or teach them how to not make it again. It's also bold for you to blame the parents for this happening when you yourself apparently can't imagine that someone might hurt a baby. Not to mention your fairy tale world where every parent always has or can wait for the perfect circumstances for childcare.
With Louise going put every night, partying with new friends, being late for work in the morning, that could be called a mess.
Strange Coincidence--"Killer British Nanny" was the name of Dr Grande's High School Punk Rock Band.
You are mistaken. It was "British Killer Nanny". I hear they played a lot of garages.
@@Martina-sw7hl I stand corrected!
Actually not bad.
Big - I think his band was "The Undiagnosed!"
@@bthomson That's a great name for a band!
Wow. I just have to give you total respect for seeing the difference in UK and US English. You are totally correct in your interpretation, and perhaps it's a shame there was nobody with your insight at the trial. (I grew up in the UK, but now live in Australia, and enjoy observing the differences between how English is spoken, and spelled, in various countries.)
Thank you for covering this case. It was gavel-to-gavel coverage back in the days of Court TV. I feel the au pair agency did not do a thorough screening of their student employees - their level of maturity in the face of stress, their ability to handle multiple priorities, and their prior work/school performance. She seemed immature and self-absorbed, acted/spoke much younger than her age, and had little experience with handling children and multi-tasking. There was a lot made of the fact the family insisted she perform housekeeping, cooking, and laundry outside of daily babysitting duties. Maybe resentment and anger boiled up and she took it out on the baby. A friend who works for a domestic au pair agency said the industry does extensive research and testing, and multiple interviews before hire due to this case. A good outcome, if not early enough to save Matthew.
An interesting sidelight!
I think entirely too much time in (and around) this trial was spent discussing the pseudo-employment conditions. It was like a competition to try to show who was a better person, Woodward or the Eappens. I have no time for such irrelevancies. Give me the evidence supporting the prosecution theory of crime!
@@AdrianColley I agree. Pitting a 19-year old girl against two physicians in a battle as to whose "lifestyle" contributed to the death of a baby was poor optics (even if it worked on the jury, the judge had perspective).
Thank you, Dr Grande for another thorough analysis. I knew so little about this case, it turns out. It's amazing what they leave out of media coverage.
I remember this case and the use of that term “popped”. Being English this is just another word for “put” or “placed”. It just seemed inconceivable that such a word could be lost in translation given the importance of the case. That said everything about this case was just so vague, shaky and unknown. The science for one, not to mention the discovery of an old injury and it’s potential bearing on the death of the infant. Woodward may have done something but what? That was never ascertained. If there’s doubt how can there be a conviction?
Yes I use ‚pop‘ in that way - ‚just pop the bag on the counter‘ or ‚I‘m just popping out‘.
I'm Australian and popping something on bed means putting or placing. It's amazing how obtuse and American-centric Americans are. No awareness of the world outside their bubble.
@@MsSilverTulip I'm surprised her lawyers didn't explain this during the trial, OR during trial prep. Many words have different meanings from one English speaking country to the next. Your 'mate', in England is an entirely different relationship than your 'mate' in the US, for example. Though, most Americans know that. I suppose other English speaking countryman know that, as well.
@ Silver Tulip
I’m American and I’ve always used “popped” in this manner. Nice assumptions there about an entire country full of diverse people, language, and perspectives though…
@@MsSilverTulip I'm American and have always used pop this way. It's common for the courts to use ridiculous and uncharitable interpretations of what the defendent says even if it's completely understandable.
I am a child care provider. This was a murder of a helpless infant. One of the children on my daughter's wheelchair basketball team is a survivor of shaken baby syndrome ( now known as traumatic brain injury) due to his child care providers abuse. His provider only received a 8 month sentence. It should have been longer.
This baby didn't have injuries due to anything other than abuse.
I can't believe the sentence is so short!
@JR Hewison of course dismiss her experience as hysteria.
@@roleat That is not what JR was doing
My husband's female friend who he has known over 20 years watched my son a cpl times and took him for lunch a cpl times. My baby avoids her and cries or hides when she is around. I can't prove or assume anything but I will never let her alone with him again
I'm shivering thinking of this. What evil lurks in the hearts of some. Little speechless children left at the mercy of someone.
So glad you are reviewing this case. I remember it very well as I had watched the trial when it took place. Congrats on a million subs!!! Well deserved.
I'm grateful for your clear comments on the jury deliberately choosing to convict of murder when they didn't believe it had been proven. They had one job!
An important factor here is the USA is one of the very, very few countries left in the world that does not offer as a right paid parental leave. In every European country the mother would get at least 6 months leave to look after the baby straight after it is born. A 19 year old untrained stranger from a foreign country is a totally inappropriate person to be given the huge responsibility of looking after someone else's child! It is ridiculous the USA doesn't provide this for new mothers.
Yeah it’s pretty ridiculous. Some jobs give 6 weeks paid leave and that’s considered a great job to have… some jobs give zero paid but will allow you to take time off. And some jobs won’t allow anything … having just had a baby I cannot imagine having to have someone else watch my 6 week old baby while I go back to work. They’re still so small and so needy and so fragile at that age. Plus they need bonding time from both parents. Plus sometimes it costs so much to have your baby watched by a daycare center, I can see how some parents (or especially a single parent, omg) might have to hire someone with no experience because they won’t require as much money. It’s such a sad situation. And you’re 100% correct.
So my small business needs to pay an employee 6 months to sit home with a baby. Grow up
Here In the UK men also get 2 weeks paid paternity leave. I never knew that there was no parental leave in the USA.
@@HeatherHolt That is why the government pays in many countries!
@@delaneybucknor3710 yeah most guys I’ve known had to use sick or vacation days for one week and that was for the birth and a few days after coming home. It’s sad to think what that does to a relationship between the father and child. The father misses out on a lot of that early bonding.
I went to college in Boston and this story in particular scared the heck out of me. When she was set free people were outraged. This judge had been notorious for making similar controversial decisions in favor of criminals. And years later when I started a family, this case influenced my decision to stay at home with my babies. I'm so glad I did -- until they went to school and then I picked my career right back up again, after some refresher courses. I'm still going strong so I didn't miss a thing by staying at home a few years. When I think about it my heart still breaks for the family and that poor little baby. I guess that judge never thought about justice for them.
What are you talking about ? There was an appeal with the Supreme Court who came to the same conclusion of manslaughter with 3 of them voting her to be released and one of them voting for murder 😹
I'm pretty sure he was thinking of the danger of an appeal overruling him. In the end, the supreme judicial court ruled that he was correct.
no, they were guilty as hell, and just used her so they wouldn't go to jail , after all your are the same country that doesn't have free healthcare and gun control....
While this case is certainly troubling, I would have to reluctantly agree that the ultimate outcome was reasonable.
Louise had a first-rate defense by none other than Barry Scheck. She also had a thoughtful, fair Judge who took almost unheard of actions on her behalf.
While many less fortunate defendants are routinely convicted on complete junk science, ineffective, even incompetent "defense", and uncaring, incompetent Judges who are often asleep at the wheel.
Even most "good" Judges wouldn't take such a politically risky, controversial move as overriding a jury's verdict.
I have so little faith in the system and humanity that I have to consciously remind myself that there still are good, honorable Judges, attorneys, juries etc.
It is also somewhat understandable that the system is the way it is.
Court officials have the soul-killing task of dealing with the absolute worst of humanity on a daily basis.
I think you are right. Too bad the parents could not have been charged with 'neglect' for hiring her in the first place. Perhaps the judge should have sat down with the parents and had them sign a contract that they would not try to find inexpensive teenage help to take care of their remaining child. They were the adult professionals.
I remember this case so well, the poor parents must be tortured by giving her a second chance.
Multiple chances.
@@RazaXML the au pair could have done the previous injuries...family should have chosen children over $$
It's at least as likely that the parents caused the prior injuries. They were doctors but didn't seek a check-up when he had all those symptoms!
@@icturner23 He didn't have any noticeable symptoms before the incident with the nanny. If the parents injured the child, they'd have been watching out for any signs of ill effects. Many times there are no signs of head trauma, after a fall, or bumping their head, for example. If it happened under the Nancy's care, she may not have thought the child even sustained an injury.
This will be interesting, I remember that case. I never shook my daughter as I remembered this and freaked out if she accidentally shook in any minor way.
I do believe in shaken baby. I work as a peds nurse. I've taken care of these poor babies. Some may be misdiagnosed but it's a tiny % and not worth questioning overall.
Congrats on 1 million Dr. Grande :)
Keep up the great work
1M! Congrats 🎊🎉🎈 you deserve more recognition!!! Keep up with the good job 👏🏻
Sigam “sigam” 😎😻👏👏
I believe she shook that baby previously, and that's where the skull fracture came from. She'd proven that she was capable of hurting him by admitting it. I don't believe that day was the first time she shook him and was aggressive with him, but obviously it was the last. Poor baby RIP.
In the UK "popped" just means placed. It doesn't carry the implication of forceful action it has in American usage. It's that old "divided by a common language" thing again.
We already know that it most likely happened previously, expert witness testified at the trail that, the injury that lead to his death could have happened up to three weeks before (when she wasn't there). Also, as repeated in this video but first stated by Patrick Barnes, a paediatric radiologist at Stanford University, & a key prosecution witness in the trial; there had been a revolution in the understanding of head injuries in the past decade, partly due to advances in MRI brain scanning technology: "We started realizing there were a number of medical conditions that can affect a baby's brain and look like the findings that we used to attribute to shaken baby syndrome or child abuse", such as infections and in utero strokes. So there's no proof that anyone even hurt him. As to other previous injuries mentioned, they were in his wrists, nobody knows how he got them or how old they were, but it seems they were old healed injuries.
There was definitely reasonable doubt in this case and one of expert witnesses has said he made a mistake and would not have testified to shaken baby syndrome now. The parents could have easily harmed the child, she could have, the baby could have fallen or possibly had a medical condition. The jury should never have come back with a guilty verdict because there was not enough evidence either way to prove what happened to that little boy.
Exactly, at the end of the day it was manslaughter. She should have received some jail time. A little bit
Thank you for discussing this! I worked in medicine when the shaken baby theory was all the rage, and I never really bought into the notion that even the most subtle shaking could cause that kind of contra coup injury. Not advocating shaking ANYBODY, and it’s best to avoid it, but I wonder how many innocent parents’ lives were ruined by the smugness of the medical community.
In my country, a baby had brainswekking and blooding according to an desease. They still held the baby back months after the parents were proven innocent, until they went public. It was a few years ago.
Congratulations on your one million subscribers Dr Grande!!
Thank you for your hard work.
Greetings from Greece
Love the proof of international appeal!
Dr. Grande, you've brought up an extremely important topic within this crime/scenario. People go to prison too often for crimes they do not commit. Congrats on your 1 million viewers.
Also prison is so very often a terrible answer to what needs to be done!
Sorry but why did the smart parents leave this tiny child in the care of this obviously untrustworthy person for SO LONG?
A co-worker reminded me of something I said to her many years ago, "If you get your kid to 18, and the are alive, you've done your job." Obviously these people were only smart in their fields of expertise. They failed the parent test, but they saved money and showed that au-pair who was boss.
"Lightly shake", riiight and murderers lighly shot their victim. She had every insentive to downplay the attack.
What is shocking to me is the verdict instanly switched to almost maximum to none at all, because the judge overruled the justice system, despite the killer admitted the crime and the evidence pointed to prior attacks as well.
The sad part is that the baby is still dead, while no one was held accountable.
Also, two physicians couldn't realize that something was wrong?
Some people are not aware of what shaking a baby can do. To say she set out to be a murderer is ridiculous
The judge is part of the justice system, he didn't overrule it. The verdict was a stretch, so he changed it to one that was a match for the facts. That is how the justice system works, we can't establish convictions based on feelings, but based on what we can prove.
She was held accountable, you just don't like how she was held accountable. And even if someone goes to prison, the baby's still dead, accountability changes nothing to that. It sounds like you buy into the myth that victims must see someone held accountable to heal, which is mistaken on many levels.
"the killer admitted the crime"
That's incorrect. The detectives didn't get a confession from her, so they resorted to plan B: damaging admissions. For example: "when you say you couldn't wake the baby, what methods of waking him did you try?" (one of the answers was "shaking him", therefore they could truthfully report "she admitted shaking the baby"). For another: "it must have been frustrating not being able to figure out why he was crying, did it make you angry?" (the answer was "yes, it was very frustrating", therefore they could truthfully report "she said she was feeling frustrated and angry because of his crying"). If you're in any doubt as to the latitude given to police to edit down their suspects' statements to just include the bits that sound most incriminating, I recommend James Duane's excellent talk "don't talk to the police", right here on youtube.
I'm still so excited and happy for you hitting a million! And thanks for hitting this topic...very tragic but interesting.
She was overworked and isolated.
19 years old and forced to take take of 3 children, clean the big house. Cook and wash for the parents whilst not being allowed to call home for more than 5 minutes aday with a 11pm curfew and no adult interaction until late in the evening..... And they paid the bare minimum. That was 70+ hours a week. They exploitd her decreasing her concentration and mental fatigue.
No neck injury which is related to baby shaking syndrome.
The baby's skull had a fracture that had signs of healing. So it had to have happened weeks earlier.
The smile was a nervous laugh. Its common here in England
I’m in the U.K. and remember this case extremely well. It was on the news and special news flashes came up about her. I was interested because me and Louise are the same age and I so wanted to travel and be an au pair. It didn’t happen because I ended up having my son at 17 he’s now 25 and I couldn’t imagine ever hurting him. I got flustered like any young person in charge of an infant but I walked away for a few mins and carried on. I believe she should’ve gone to prison because that gorgeous baby didn’t cause those injuries himself. Another miscarriage of justice sadly.
I'm in Ireland and I remember this case well also. At the time, I was preparing to move to the US to take up a job with my new 3-year visa. I was stunned to realize that, as a stranger in a strange land, I was likely to get the same judicial railroading as Woodward did, if I was ever falsely accused while in Massachusetts. Woodward was convicted on the basis of emotion, that someone _had_ to be culpable for what happened to Matthew, and that ending the trial with nobody held responsible was just not an emotionally acceptable option. The medical evidence was clear: Matthew's injuries were weeks old, so there was just no way to pin them on Woodward.
I have 2 children under 5; even the thought of someone doing this to one of my kids is enough to make me cry. However, in a legal sense, I do agree that 2nd degree murder was a reach. I'm not sure she should have been let out with time served however.
So much useful and interesting information from Grande. The saga goes on and on and on … and it’s never boring. Thanks, Grande.
Does the cat understand that backup camera?
Thanks for this, Dr. G. And congrats on 1M! 🌟
I just love your calm soothing voice. Thank you Dr. Grande. I needed some CALM this morning. I do remember this case of the baby sitter. It really affected American parents difficult choice of who to entrust our precious children with. Still horrifying.
Yes! Serious fallout from this travesty! Maybe for the best if mothers care for their own? Stated by a feminist (Judy 😎).
The poor innocent baby was neglected by his parents. These parents knew this Au Pair was incapable of caring for the baby. They thought having her sign a contract would change her irresponsible behavior? She should have been charged with murder & the parents charged with neglect
She was charged with murder.
@@eadweard.
You're correct. I should have stated convicted of murder
@@glendasully Ahh yes I see.
@@eadweard.
Thank you 😊
Congratulations on hitting a million! Excellent video, thank you
Dr. Grande said it was described as a "sleepy town" and my mind filled in ".. it's a quiet village, every day like the one before.. little town full of little people.. waking up to saaaaayyyy... Bonjour!"
And now I have "Beauty and the Beast" stuck in my head..
Edit: ugh.. typos..
I worked as a PICU RN for 4 yrs during which time I cared for 2 cases attributed to shaken baby syndrome. One case involved police finding that only the wife of a prominent pediatrician whose professor physician father had an auditorium named after him at the medical college could have done it which was shocking. I never found out the outcome of that case but I do know our staff all accepted it as true. The other was determined that the boyfriend did it and when the mother wouldn't leave him her other child was removed from her. As a RN at the time I accepted the syndrome as true but with this new point of view now am more skeptical and will study the evidence further. If I as a healthcare provider was so sure of it's validity how could a lay person on a jury not think so? Or the police investigating? I think of the collateral damage involved in these assumptions and realize that when an infant is involved society as a whole needs a perpetrator to punish in order to make things right instead of accepting sometimes things are just out of our control.
COngrats Dr Grande on your milestone subs = amazing ! I wonder if you can analyse the case of Dennis Nielson, a serial killer of young men in the UK. He was damaged as a child and turned into a lonely nerd. Killing for Company is well documented, but I wonder what your view is? Inate killer or a twisted mind looking for company. Love your videos especially at night when I listen to them as podcasts.
I think Dr Grande already has a video on him.
@@lexiwilson9501 thank you Lexi I will look it up ! x
If you decide you want to pay someone to love your child, be extremely careful who you employ!
She should have spent a lot more time behind bars in my opinion. Poor Matthew, RIP. The parents should have also done more. They knew that Louise was not adequate for this job but were too lenient towards her. Great video as always, Dr. Grande.
Lenient or lazy?
... did this chick have ANY history with even babysitting children? Because I have this horrible feeling that this couple heard a British accent and thought this teenager would be perfectly fine to be in charge of their children.
They were expecting a Mary Poppins experience.
@@rach2007Eire that's what I was wondering...
@@rach2007Eire the British au pair was a status symbol
And we're just going to forget that the sitter made the choice to care for the child for her own benefit. If it was too stressful she should have quit and gone back to the UK. Instead she killed a baby.
@@graysonwalker Right, and Americans cannot tell the difference between accents.
Poor sweet baby Matthew ☹️... I wonder if Ms. Louise had been "rough" towards the baby on previous occasions, perhaps she had caused Matthew's earlier injuries... If only the Eppen's had not given Ms. Louise another chance after her poor job performance😞. Great analysis, Dr. G. Interesting info on shaken baby syndrome. Love you 🥰, love your channel ♥️
Had his parents maybe been rough him?
The old injury was judged to have probably occurred in the time before she was employed. She may have aggravated an old injury by her actions, but she could not have caused it in the first place…
Parents certainly knew she wasn't responsible enough for the job. Why on earth did they keep her on? Sounds like they could've afforded professional care.
W/O discussing why..I was present when Louise laughed. She laughed because her lawyer's raised and became impassioned and melodramatic!! A very young and surprised Louise saw what he was doing as comical! Truth is, she wasn't the only one trying to supress giggles. Dr. Grande..if you can find that clip..I think "Court TV may have one..you'll se exactly what I mean.
Maybe leaving your precious children with a19 year old stranger isn’t the cleverest decision. Neither is waiting until problems arise, to issue extensive rules and regulations for the nanny.
I’m absolutely not condoning the nanny’s behaviour in any way at all.
This was one of many stories that traumatized me into believing I could never leave my children with anyone when they were small. And I am lucky enough to have not had to.
But so many people are NOT so lucky! While I agree the best outcome is for the parents to bring up their kids, so many, many people have impediments to this best situation!
@@bthomson absolutely understood; that's why I added the lucky enough part.
Why do parents think an 18 year old teenager is an appropriate full time child care provider? Even a “mature” teenager has trouble with emotional lability and behavior control. The FIRST TIME she had problems was when to fire her! Retaliation to threats of deportation is what I see!
Congratulations! Wow what a goal to reach and I really enjoy your show.
Dr.Grande, thank you for always making such well researched, and thought out, cases. Well done getting 1 million subscribers.
I was living in the Boston area when this case came to light, and there is a possibility that I might have interviewed for the same job. I also saw Ms. Woodward at a Harvard Square restaurant after the trial. I followed the coverage very closely in the Boston Globe at the time.
When I first heard about the story on the radio, I noticed that she looked just like me. My gut reaction was, "She's guilty."
About the interview I had, it could have been at the Eppen's, it's possible it wasn't. I know the exterior of the house was similar, same area, and that the timeline was consistent. Also, the person who interviewed me looked like the photos that were being presented at the time of Dr. Eppen (the mother). There was something that gave me pause at the interview, something that told me without any doubt at all this was not the job for me. Parts of it were my temper, and my complete inexperience with children. But I felt that there was something I was not being told. Again, it's absolutely possible that it was a different family. I called back and said I had found another job. The person said she understood. She was very polite.
When I saw Ms. Woodward at a restaurant, it was after the verdict. She was with a group of other people her age having a lively discussion. I was struck by how very ordinary she seemed, and how no one else seemed to have realized who she was, although I am quite certain it was her.
I will say one thing in her defense. Au Pairs, at the time, were told a very unrealistic story about how they would be spending their time, and were really sold on a concept of being Au Pairs that was not consistent with the reality. Some Au Pairs didn't know that they would be spending well over 40 hours a week doing child care, which was common because they lived with the families. Au Pair has, since this incident, started giving the Au Pairs a more accurate picture.
One odd thing, at the time, it was not widely known Matthew Eppen was not an only child. This may have been to protect the brother. He was never mentioned in any news articles.
Plus the family went on to have at least one more child. I don't remember if the mother quit her job to be home with the children at that point.
Very interesting... Something told you this was not the job for you...
@@sodoh4920 I just had a bad feeling. This is not a good place to work.
Thanks for this perspective. I am getting the distinct impression that EF Au Pair is selling au pairs placements as a sort of employment agency.
I’m a bit late here but congratulations on a million! You deserve it.
I thought of this trial again today when one of my pupils asked what they should do with their homework book. “Just pop it on my desk,” I replied and then I remembered Louise Woodward.
Thank you for still using the word pupil.
I trust that your pupil gave the book a severe minute-long shake, and then dropped it onto your desk from a height of fifteen feet.
I can tell you from a lifetime of experience, I had three older sisters who all got pregnant at 18 and had their first children while staying at home for the first few years. I spent alot of time with my nephews. After I left home at 19 I eventually found my partner and instantly had three children, they are grown now and gave us four grandchildren, two girls and two boys. Babies and toddlers do not get significant injuries from being tossed on a mattress(unless from more than 2-3 feet and with force) or light roughhousing. Toddlers especially are inquisitive and the cause of most of my gray hair, they climb and fall and jump off things and usually never get more than a light bruise. Those injuries to that child were likely done out of anger and frustration. Don't be lackisdasical on your children's care, they should have fired her and I can only imagine why two Dr's would not have noticed their child had a brain bleed for some amount of time. Tragic when violence is done to children. Not everyone is mentally capable of caring for children under two years, don't let just anyone be in that position, you may regret it for the rest of your life.
Thank you! No way that something didn't happen to that poor baby the day i don't believe her the child had to have his his head on something to cause the bleeding again in his head. Don't get me started on the two negligent parents!! That poor baby also had a few weeks old wrst pain! He was in alot of pain but never noticed wtf???
Although I'm all for showing more compassion, I think that more than intent needs to be considered here. A young child lost their life as a direct result of her actions, and she mostly escaped any significant punishment. It doesn't seem that she even took much responsibility for what she did. Her getting off easy seems like an insult to the child who lost their life.
Well... what specifically should have happened differently?
eb - The easy part is to comment. The hard part is to figure out what punishment is supposed to do? Teach, adjust behavior, give justice to the victim? None of these outcomes are easy to establish!
My husband and I were vacationing in Jamaica and met Sunny and Debbie while they were honeymooning there. We spent time with them on the beach and on a few excursions.They were both in med school and were a nice couple. We didn’t stay in touch.I came home from work one day and my hubby was doing a project on the house. The TV was on and he started telling me about the case.when I looked at the TV and saw Sunny and Debbie, I was shocked! My husband didn’t recognize them until I told him, then got out some photos we had taken. Very sad that they lost their little boy . 😢
One reason the nanny got such a light sentence was that the British press and public were pressuring the judge to let her go. I'm sure the agencies that make money by sending teenagers to America to be nannies were afraid they lose business. This girl was a very irresponsible babysitter. She spent hours on the phone while neglecting the children. The parents should have fired her instead of giving her a warning.
Thank you Dr. Grande for a very well-explained video. This case is hard for me to make a valid decision. My wife and I raised 2 children and never ever shook or mishandled our children. Therefore for me hearing that a stranger would have harmed one of my children is not acceptable. This is how I feel about this presentation. Best Regards.
What involvement did youth (proven lack of mental maturity!) have in this case? While it is true some kids are more mature and mentally developed than others, maybe not so smart to leave infants with CHILDREN!
This case was troubling - I remember it in the news as a teenager. I believe that she was responsible for the little boy's death, and most likely the previous injuries he sustained which contributed to his death. RIP Matthew
I remember this case. Thanks for your input on it Dr Grande. Always interesting to hear your views.
Years ago I saw an episode of Family Feud with one team having a married couple who both claimed to be police officers. The question was "name a good way to stop a baby from crying", and the male "policeman" immediately said "shake them", to which everyone was appalled, even his wife. To justify his ignorant statement he gesticulated grabbing a baby and shaking them quite hard while saying "like this" and then looking around to see if everyone understood that's the "medically approved method" to do it (in his mind). The audience screamed with disapproval as the "cop" stood there, not understanding the profound wrongness of his answer.
That occurrence has stuck with me since I first saw it and I shudder whenever I wonder if he's actually done that. I hope that if he wasn't lying about being a cop his past official actions were investigated to see if he had ever caused permanent damage to a child.
People tend to believe ANY adult who claims to be a police officer and we take for granted their methods of performing duties are professional methods (until we learn otherwise). If a claimed au pair is a youngish girl we also tend to believe THEM. A novice Nanny doesn't automatically become an experienced au pair due simply to their employer's bestowment of that title.
What I love about your show, is you teach people how to think logically, and scientifically and I think we need this more than anything right now.
Knowledge is power.
You teach people to reign in the temptation to claim knowledge of truth when it's simply an opinion, without adequate evidence, application of logic, and the scientific method.
I want to be right.
But I want to know truth even more.
If everyone took a deep breath and applied your methods to what they think they know, society would be better off.
Absolutely! This comment!💯
What a thoughtful thing to say - bravo!
Dr. Grande, if mental health is such an important issue for you, how come you haven't done a video addressing the addictiveness of your channel? Shame, sir!
Not for nothing but the story horrible and tragic as it may be was many years back. Like early to mid 1990's ...
Just to clarify - you are discussing subDURAL hematoma in this case, refering to the dura, or meninges of the brain. Hematomas beneath the dura cause brain compression and can be life-threatening.
The term subDERMAL hematoma describes bleeding beneath the skin and could present anywhere in the body, and is not necessarily dangerous.
Good info! Thanks!
I came here looking for someone to point this out.
Wow I remember this. It was ages ago.
That judge had REPEATEDLY told the jury that if they did not think there was enough evidence to convict her of murder they had to give a "not guilty" verdict, but they still found her guilty.
I think however the judge did the right thing in reducing her conviction to manslaughter.
My brother looked in on his infant daughter one day while she was asleep and found her unresponsive and not breathing. He'd not been trained in CPR so he did the Heimlich, which was the only thing he could think of. She gave a gasp, started breathing, and pinked up. He still called 911 and asked EMS to check her out. They said she looked fine and didn't even transfer her. My brother went to his wife's workplace and explained what had happened. The two of them were concerned about why "Jane" had stopped breathing in the first place, so they took her to the hospital. The hospital couldn't find any reason why Jane had stopped breathing and said they thought it was just a fluke, but they kept her overnight to monitor her anyway.
In the morning a doctor my brother didn't know came in, looked in Jane's eyes with a light, and left without even speaking to my brother. Next thing he knows the cops came and arrested him because the doctor -- an ophthalmologist who wasn't even on Jane's team -- that said Jane had "shaken baby syndrome" due to the broken blood vessels in her eyes. Well, DUH! ANY resuscitation can cause broken blood vessels in the eyes. Jane's pediatrician disagreed with the diagnosis, but Steve was prosecuted anyway. I had to cash in my pension to pay for his lawyer. He ended up pleading guilty to "contributing to the delinquency of a minor" -- they insisted that he must have done SOMETHING wrong -- because he couldn't afford a retainer to go to court.
"Shaken baby syndrome" makes so little sense. If you're shaking a little baby hard enough to cause brain damage, wouldn't the baby's little neck be a hot mess? But the "triad" doesn't include any neck injuries.
What a terrible ordeal for your brother and your family! He did everything right, and got blamed for it. So sad and totally unjust. I remember, not long ago, people were getting charged with Shaken Baby Syndrome quite often. Every time they could've explain an injury, or death, of a baby, they would say it was SBS. I wonder how many people went to jail because of an over zealous doctor's opinion? Sad, all around.
Yes this was the story about the "Au Pair". It was all over the news when it happened.😨😨 Seriously you can't do things like that with infant children 😢😢
Right! They’re just so helpless and need someone to help them. I don’t see how anyone could ever hurt a baby. If you get frustrated with a baby you put them into a safe place like a bassinet or their crib, make sure they’re fed and changed and clean and warm, and you walk away and give yourself 10-15 minutes to chill out. That’s why we have baby monitors and cameras.
You can do things like that but it's illegal and we will never know how guilty she was, but she has to live with what she has done.
@@olgawyn746 Sha has to live with it.
The baby cannot live.
@@olgawyn746 Or the oarents have to live with one or both of them having done it.
@@icturner23 The parents did something?
Great video Dr. Grande, as always 👍 Can you please add the case of Tracy Latimer to your list of topics? It's heartbreaking but very interesting. Thank you.
I need these in a podcast, no commercials. His house is so soothing, I could sleep.