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Woman Gets 25 Years in Prison for Child Abuse

Maria E. Rangel was babysitting when she hurt a baby who was crying.

 

A 28-year-old woman will spend 25 years in prison after she hurt an infant so badly that the baby had to be transported to the hospital via Flight for Life.

Maria E. Rangel, of Waukesha, was ordered Wednesday to be on eight years of supervision after she serves her initial prison sentence on the felony child abuse conviction in Waukesha County Circuit Court.

According to the criminal complaint:

Police were called to a house in the 300 block of Darlene Drive on June 2 after it was reported there was an infant with no pulse and not breathing. The child was transported to the hospital where medical personnel discovered numerous injuries within the infant, including two skull fractures, swelling on the brain and a mid-right side tibia fracture.

Rangel initially denied causing injury to the infant, saying she discovered the baby wasn’t breathing when she went to feed the boy. Rangel told police she called the baby’s mother who came over and began to shake him to wake him up.

Rangel later told investigators the infant’s head accidentally hit the door of the refrigerator while she was holding him and she then lost grip of the infant who fell on the floor.

She eventually admitted to squeezing and shaking the baby because the infant continued to cry.

Related Topics: Crime, Maria Rangel, and Waukesha Police Department

Vernon

10:34 am on Friday, January 6, 2012

Will the Baby be OK, or is there any permanent damage?

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Sarah Millard

10:46 am on Friday, January 6, 2012

Working on getting that information...

Vernon

11:06 am on Friday, January 6, 2012

Thanks Sarah,
I would have to say major permanent damage, considering the sentence.
Do you know what kind of time the smother mothers from Milwaukee get?

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Johnny Paycheck

8:12 pm on Friday, January 6, 2012

Even if the infant did "recover" I don't see how he/she would ever have normal brain function. People don't grow up to be doctors and scientists after suffering traumatic head injuries like that as infants. Now realize that if a man did this there would be people everywhere calling for his execution and the 25 years she just got doesn't sound like a very harsh sentence.

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Martin Tully

1:25 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013

I agree Johnny. If a man did this he would be in jail for life. Now, she will get out and be able to inflict more punishment on society. And of course she will be getting free medical and social security checks. Seems unfair all the way around.

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