Kareem Bruce Bryant was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Aug. 19 for the homicide of his girlfriend’s 6-month-old baby.
Kareem Bruce Bryant was charged with the homicide of a 6-month-old baby girl. (Prince George’s Police Department)
Bryant, 24, of the 1400 block of 18th Street in Southeast Washington, D.C., was charged with first degree child abuse resulting in death and second degree murder of Mariah Tilghman. Tilghman died on Jan. 9. According to the Prince George’s County Police Department, he was under the influence of K2 or synthetic marijuana. Bryant told police in January that he was responsible for the baby’s injuries.
“While we are pleased that Mr. Bryant took responsibility for his actions, there is absolutely no excuse to harm a defenseless child,” said Prince Georges County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks in a statement. “We have seen far too many instances of children in our community who have died at the hands of individuals who were responsible for their care and it will not be tolerated. We will prosecute these individuals to the fullest extent of the law.”
The incident happened on Jan. 6 when Bryant was watching the baby while her mother was taking a shower. According to police, the baby stopped breathing and Bryant then applied CPR and called 911.
Patrol units arrived at the home in Landover, Md. The baby was taken to Prince George’s Hospital Center and later flown to the Children’s National Medical Center in the District. Results from a CAT scan showed the baby had symptoms of what is called shaken baby syndrome.
Tilghman remained in critical condition and died on Jan. 9. An autopsy revealed blunt force injuries to the baby’s head and chest. The death was ruled a homicide. Bryant admitted he caused the baby’s injuries.
The Mayo Clinic defines Shaken Baby Syndrome as abusive head trauma, shaken impact syndrome, inflicted head injury or whiplash shake syndrome —a serious brain injury resulting from forcefully shaking an infant or toddler.
The last reported death of an infant in Prince Georges County took place on Dec. 4, 2015. Police arrested Beatrice Manning, a day-care provider working inside her home in Oxon Hill, Md. for the death of nine-month-old Savannah Kai Wright. Manning, 43, was arrested on April 9 of the same charges as Bryant. She was also charged with two counts of felony assault.