Jurors still deliberating in case of dead toddler

AUBURN – Jurors weighed the evidence for a second full day Wednesday but failed to reach a verdict in the trial of a Lisbon Falls woman accused of shaking her 21-month-old son so violently that he died hours later at a hospital.

The jury, which is sorting through nearly two weeks of testimony that included conflicting opinions from medical experts, began deliberations late Monday in Androscoggin County Superior Court. It will go back to work Thursday morning.

Prosecutors contend Sarah Allen, 30, shook her adopted son Nathaniel, causing him to die from a brain injury.

The defense contends there was a rush to judgment by police and investigators who overlooked other evidence suggesting a medical condition could have contributed to the boy’s death.

Verne Paradie, Allen’s lawyer, contends several minor falls were exacerbated by an undetected brain defect.

No testing for a neurological disease or seizure disorder was conducted even though the boy had shown some delays in walking and talking that could have been a warning sign of trouble, Paradie said.

Assistant Attorney General Lisa Marchese urged jurors to consider the medical evidence.