Roommate Shakes Baby So Hard Her Corneas Detached From Head, Victim's Mom Says

A 1-year-old girl in Detroit, Michigan, died last month after her babysitter allegedly shook her so violently that her mother said her corneas detached.

Layla Hartley suffered head injuries at home while she was being watched over by her mother's 28-year-old roommate and longtime family friend, Dennis Wayne Justus, when she went to work on Dec. 17 last year, Fox 2 Detroit reported.

The infant was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment, but she eventually succumbed to her injuries and died two days later, a report by WDIV said.

Hartley, whose death was ruled by police as "non-accidental," suffered a brain bleed caused by shaken baby syndrome and was later kept on life support so her organs could be donated, according to another report by Fox 2 Detroit.

Melissa Hartley, the child's mother, claimed that Justus had shaken her daughter so hard that it resulted in the baby's corneas detaching.

Additionally, the alleged abuse caused hematomas, or internal bruises caused by internal bleeding, Fox News reported.

Justus was arrested on Jan. 14 and charged with felony homicide over the allegations. He was arraigned at the 39th District Court Tuesday and is now currently being held at the Macomb County Jail on a $300,000 cash bond.

Should he make bond, Justus will be required to wear a GPS monitoring device.

"I just want justice for my daughter. I truly trusted [Justus] and I thought he was genuinely a good person. I didn't want to believe it. I still don't want to believe it," Melissa was quoted as saying.

In a similar story, a Florida man was arrested last month and charged with murder after he shook his infant daughter to death over her crying.

Hector J. Solis, 29, brought his daughter to Palm Bay City Hall and told police she was not breathing. The father later admitted to shaking his child because he was "frustrated" that she was "crying for the longest time.”

The child was taken to Melbourne Regional Medical Center after medical responders initially performed life-saving measures on her, but she later succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead on Dec. 19, 2021.

Solis was charged with one count each of first-degree premeditated murder and aggravated child abuse. He appeared before County Judge Judith E. Atkin and was denied bond.

Between 1,000 to 3,000 children in the U.S. die every year due to shaken baby syndrome.