All too often, young victims of child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury don't survive the harm inflicted upon them.
Fortunately, the three-month-old twin boys of Destinee Reynolds are an exception to this rule.
At this point, however, there's no way of knowing if permanent damage was done to them — allegedly by their father, Thamien Vasquez, who's been charged in the case.
And according to a probable cause statement on view below, doctors say their brains were injured badly enough to cause internal bleeding.
On October 12, the document states, a Denver police detective received a call about three-month-old twins who had been admitted to Children's Hospital.
The diagnosis: brain bleeds for both boys.
The examining physician told law enforcers that the injuries were consistent with the children being shaken.
He subsequently signed a form "noting the victims have a substantial risk of serious, permanent disfigurement or a substantial risk of loss or impairment of the function of any part or organ of the body," the report reveals.
Since the only people who had cared for the twins were their parents, Vasquez and Reynolds, suspicion naturally flowed their way.
Both parents agreed to speak to the police, and during his interview, Vasquez is said to have "admitted to shaking the children when they were about one-month old. He stated that he shook them while playing with them.
"He also stated he would throw the one-month-olds into the air and would catch them," the report continues.
It adds: "The children were not developed enough to hold up their head on their own at the time he was shaking them and throwing them up."
In an interview with CBS4, Reynolds says she believes Vasquez shook the boys when she wasn't around.
Vasquez has now been charged with two counts of child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury. He was booked on a $50,000 bond and made his first court appearance earlier this week.
In the meantime, Reynolds's sister has set up a GoFundMe page on behalf of the boys.
Here's the introduction to the page, entitled "Our Road to Recovery."
It's something you never want to hear, that your child has been hurt by someone. Worse, by their own father, someone who is supposed to love and protect them. But that was the news my sister received when she took her twin boys to the hospital on October 12.At this writing, pledges are about halfway toward the page's $1,500 goal. For more information, click here.
My nephews have very serious injuries including brain bleeds, brain swelling, delayed reaction, and a fractured arm. They will need to see a neurologist to monitor their brains and different specialists and therapists. There will be many xrays and MRIs in the future.
With their father now out of the picture, my sister is going to need as much help as she can get. So our family is asking for any help in order to get the boys to and from their appointments, and provide anything they may need for their recovery.
As for the boys, they seem to be bright and responsive right now. We hope they stay that way and avoid any worst-case scenarios.
Look below to see Thamien Vasquez's booking photo, followed by the aforementioned CBS4 report and the arrest documents.
Thamien Vasquez Arrest Affidavit