More than a year has passed since 10-week-old Jason Mid yette died, his body littered with what doctors said were more than 20 broken bones in various stages of healing.
The Boulder County coroner ruled the Louisville boy’s death a homicide, the result of blunt- force injuries to Jason’s head.
Boulder County District Attorney Mary Lacy has yet to charge anyone in the case, though a grand jury has been hearing evidence since October.
“Work continues on this case on a daily basis,” district attorney’s spokeswoman Carolyn French said.
But the length of the investigation, and the tight-lipped nature of the district attorney’s office throughout, has drawn steady criticism from several Internet, radio and television commentators. The recent anniversary of Jason’s death – he died March 3, 2006 – has amplified those voices.
“The frustrating thing is there obviously was a crime committed here,” said Denver attorney Craig Silverman, a former prosecutor who has taken up the issue several times on his radio show. “I can understand why it might take some time to prosecute this, but it’s been an awfully long time.”
Louisville Mayor Chuck Sisk, a former prosecutor, said he understands why the lengthy investigation has some people upset. But he said he would rather the investigation take as long as it needs to be thorough than for the district attorney to file charges haphazardly in response to public criticism.
“It frustrates me as an individual when it takes a long time for charges to be filed,” Sisk said. “… But I have every confidence in the district attorney’s office.”
Jason’s parents, Alex and Molly Midyette, first took Jason to the doctor on Feb. 24, 2006, saying that Jason “was not himself,” according to search warrants filed in the case. The Midyettes then rushed Jason to the Boulder Community Hospital emergency room.
When an officer tried to talk with Jason’s parents at the hospital, a family member intervened and said a lawyer was on the way, the records state. A doctor at Boulder Community Hospital told police the Midyettes told him they didn’t know what happened to their son and made no other statements.
Alex Midyette’s father is J. Nold Midyette, a prominent Boulder architect and commercial property owner.
Attorneys for the Midyettes declined to comment.
French declined to discuss details of the investigation, as did a Louisville police commander.
Silverman said that just from what is publicly available in the case, he believes Lacy has enough evidence to charge someone with Jason’s death. He acknowledged, though, that there may be unknown factors complicating Lacy’s decision.
“At some point, as a district attorney on a case like this,” Silverman said, “you have to make a call even if you might have to make it a lesser charge than might be deserved.”
Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
