Milwaukee man accused of throwing his baby while playing a video game

MILWAUKEE – A Milwaukee man is charged with life-threatening child abuse after prosecutors say he threw a baby against a wall while playing video games.

20-year-old Jalin White is charged with two crimes:

• Child abuse – intentionally causing serious bodily harm
• Neglecting a child (resulting in serious bodily harm)

Jalin White is currently being held on a $100,000 cash bond and his preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 15th.

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Case details

WARNING: The following information describes child abuse. Reader discretion is advised.

Child abuse complaint filed with Children's Wisconsin

According to the criminal complaint, Milwaukee police officers and investigators responded to Children's Wisconsin on Nov. 5 to investigate a child abuse complaint.

The child abuse report involves the victim, a baby who is just over eight months old.

The complaint states the baby was seriously injured and had to be intubated. The baby lost a pulse and the treatment team had to perform several rounds of CPR to restore the pulse.

A CT scan revealed that the baby had a “large fragmented parietal skull fracture on the right side that was slightly displaced, along with a large right-sided subdural hemorrhage with right-to-left midline displacement of the brain.” A chest x-ray revealed multiple, totaling six, posterior rib fractures in varying stages of healing, along with a healing left clavicle fracture. A craniectomy was performed to relieve subdural hemorrhage and relieve pressure. Due to the severity of the baby's brain injury, the baby is not expected to survive.

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Interview with the defendant

The complaint goes on to say that officers discovered the baby was living at a residence near 42nd and Good Hope. Officers interviewed residents of the residence, including defendant Jalin White, who was arrested. A woman was also arrested.

On November 6, while in custody, investigators conducted an interview with White, who made the following admissions against his interests.

Initially, White said the baby's skull fracture and head injury resulted from the other woman hitting the baby's head against the door frame as she rushed out of the bedroom to show him the unresponsive baby. When confronted with the severity of the baby's injuries, White claimed the baby fell while he was changing his diaper. Specifically, White claimed that while the baby was changing his diaper, he was lying on the bed (an air mattress) and fell onto the carpeted floor. Investigators said a short fall on a carpeted surface would not cause the baby's serious injuries.

The complaint goes on to say that White said he dropped the baby while he was standing and playing video games. The baby squirmed and fell “hard to the ground.” White suspected that the baby's head must have hit a part of the dresser or a pole on the way to the floor. Investigators showed White photos of the crime scene and confronted White about what might have hit the baby's head.

Investigators confronted White directly and asked, “Did you try to put him on the bed and he hit the wall?” In response, White admitted to throwing the baby against the wall. Specifically, White played video games. The baby was in his backpack. White picked up the baby while he played video games to “keep him quiet for a little bit.” The baby became heavy in White's arms, so he threw him against the wall and onto the bed. According to the complaint, the baby hit the wall about a foot above the bed before landing face first on the bed.

Investigators told White that they would work with medical professionals to determine whether his explanation of throwing the baby against the wall was responsible for the severity of the baby's injuries. In response, White said, “He hit his head hard against the wall, bro. I swear he hit his head hard against the wall” and “I heard the wall, it was hard on his head. It was hard. There was a “loud hard wall” and “I heard the impact of the wall after I threw it.” White said he plays NBA 2K and the game is competitive. He was down by two points in the fourth quarter of the game and became frustrated while holding the baby, which ultimately led to him throwing the baby against the wall.