DETROIT – The Michigan Supreme Court overturned a 2006 murder conviction in the death of an infant in an appeal that centered on new opinions about so-called shaken baby syndrome.
The court said Chazlee Lemons, who is serving a life prison sentence, deserves a new trial. Her lawyers have lined up scientific experts, and the doctor who performed the autopsy nearly 20 years ago changed his opinion on the manner of Nakita Lemons' death.
It's probable that a “jury would have a reasonable doubt” about Lemons' guilt, the court said Thursday in a 5-2 decision led by Justice Megan Cavanagh.
Lemons was represented by the Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan Law School, which has successfully challenged similar convictions across the state.
The Wayne County prosecutor, Kym Worthy, said her office was disheartened by the court's decision and will take Lemons to trial again.
“This child went through unspeakable trauma," Worthy said.
Nakita, who had experienced breathing problems since birth, was a few months old when she died while in Lemons' care in 2005. The prosecutor charged the parent with first-degree murder, based on autopsy results and her statements to police.
Lemons told police that she shook Nakita three or four times to get her to stop crying, according to a summary of the case.
Dr. Bader Cassin, who performed the autopsy, said his examination revealed a swollen brain and retinal hemorrhages. At trial, he classified the death as shaken baby syndrome. Lemons’ lawyer at that time did not offer an expert to rebut Cassin.
But Cassin's opinion changed in 2017 during an effort to reopen the case in Wayne County court. He said Nakita could have choked on baby formula. He noted that biomechanical scientists had demonstrated that the forces in shaking were insufficient to produce the injury.
The Innocence Clinic also offered experts, including a biomechanical engineer with experience researching head injuries. Prosecutors had their own experts to back up the shaken baby syndrome theory. A judge and the state appeals court ultimately upheld Lemons' conviction.
The Supreme Court acknowledged that Lemons had made incriminating statements to police about shaking Nakita. But the court said a jury at a new trial might find that the confession was false.
“As we have recognized elsewhere, suspects presented with seemingly incontrovertible physical evidence of their guilt may confess falsely to ameliorate their current conditions,” the court said.
In dissent, Justice Brian Zahra accused the majority of relying on “extraordinarily suspect evidence” to rule in favor of Lemons and reverse the decisions of a prominent Detroit-area judge. Zahra said there wasn't scientific evidence to believe the brain injuries were caused by choking on formula.
In a court filing, the American Academy of Pediatrics supported the prosecutor and had urged the Supreme Court not to be swayed by "fringe courtroom science" questioning head injuries.
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