Shaken baby case nears a verdict

Did an 8-month-old Aurora infant die from latent brain damage from a prior bout with meningitis?

Or was the baby's death in March 2004 the result of being violently shaken up to seven times by his father?

Kane County Judge Grant Wegner could rule on the case by Aug. 31, as prosecutors and defense attorneys have wrapped up a lengthy bench trial.

Since his arrest in March 2004, Noel Quevedo has been held in the Kane County jail on $2 million bail.

The 27-year-old faces 20 to 60 years in prison if convicted of murdering his son.

In their closing arguments, prosecutors Greg Sams and Christine Downs pointed to Quevedo's admission to Aurora police that he shook the younger of his two sons seven times.

Downs argued Quevedo was frustrated with the colicky infant after a long day of manual labor.

Three medical experts, including Dr. Lawrence Cogan, who performed an autopsy of the baby at the Cook County medical examiner's office, said the infant had injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

"The evidence in this case was clear that (the victim's) damage was so severe that even before he made it to Mercy (Center Hospital) in Aurora, his brain was nearly dead," Downs wrote in her closing argument.

Defense attorney Fred Morelli argued the child died from a seizure that was caused from latent brain damage from a bout with meningitis when he was less than a month old.

A pediatric neurologist, Dr. Robert Shuman, testified that the seizure led to a string of events -- cardiac arrest, brain damage and eventually brain death.

Morelli also disputed his client's statements to police that he shook his son, saying there was no videotape of Quevedo's second interview.

"(Police) grilled him at a time when he was most vulnerable. His son had died virtually in his arms, he was sleep deprived, he was threatened with the arrest of his wife and he was treated roughly," Morelli wrote.