A 9-week-old boy was laid to rest Monday, with a pastor saying he hopes some good can come from the death of the infant who allegedly was abused because he pulled out his pacifier.
Tanner Dowler's tiny white casket, topped by a teddy bear, was flanked by several bouquets of flowers, a cast of the newborn's hand and pictures of the baby, sleeping peacefully.
"It's too early to tell what good might come from this," pastor David DeBord told a gathering of about 50 family and friends at a funeral service. "Maybe his death might expose a hole in the safety net that needs repairing."
Tanner's paternal grandparents, Woody and Lea Dowler, have said that before Tanner's birth, they wrote letters to county social services warning that the boy's parents needed parenting classes. Officials have denied wrongdoing.
Tanner died Oct. 12 after suffering burns to his feet and face, two broken arms and a severe brain injury. Investigators believe his arms were broken when they were pinned behind him to prevent him from dislodging a pacifier.
His parents brought him to a hospital Oct. 3 and were arrested the same day. His father, Joseph Dowler, 34, was charged with first-degree murder and child abuse. His mother, Audra, 19, could face similar charges. Both were jailed.
On Sunday, dozens of people filed past the open casket as protesters carried signs demanding tougher penalties for those convicted of child abuse.
"I just can't imagine that little baby going through," Lora Outcelt said as she hugged her own 3 1/2-month-old son tight to her chest. "I was shocked. It's heartbreaking. It's horrible. As a new mom, I can't imagine."
Very sad bump. Thank God the usual gang of idiots aren't going to support this maniac.
It is crimes like these that make me understand why burning at the stake was a popular punishment.
Nine weeks of hell for the little guy. One of those evil "anonymous" calls could have saved him from this.
Ah, truly a SICK FREAK. Makes me shake my head when I see such a story. Thanks for the ping!
UPDATE ON THIS STORY Wife Testifies Husband Abused Baby
Audra Dowler Testifies Against Joseph Dowler
POSTED: 11:38 a.m. MST November 17, 2003
She is serving 10 (TEN) years in prison for negligence in connection with Tanner's death.
Joseph Dowler faces life in prison if convicted of first-degree murder.
BOULDER, Colo. -- The mother of an 8-week-old baby who died last year took the stand Monday in the father's murder trial, testifying that although she may not have helped the infant much, it was her husband who abused him.
Tanner Dowler died last October of brain injuries. The baby had 14 broken bones and burns on both feet, according to medical reports. He had also been shaken hard.
His father, Joseph Dowler, is on trial now in Boulder County for first-degree murder and child abuse. His defense team is trying to shift some of the blame on Audra Dowler.
In a very low-key and unemotional manner, Audra Dowler testified Monday that she wasn't happy when she learned she was pregnant and was ready to abort the baby because she was not ready to be a mother. Although the 18-year-old woman loved her son, she said she did very little to care for him and that it was her husband who acted as both Tanner's mother and father. Audra Dowler said she never saw Joseph hit or abuse Tanner but that she saw marks on the baby and noticed that he had burned feet.
The night before the baby was rushed to the hospital, she said Joseph woke her up and he was crying.
"He said, 'I think I broke our son,'" Audra Dowler said.
"Are those the exact words he used?" the prosecutor asked.
"Yes, ma'am." Dowler said.
"And how did that strike you at that time? It's kind of an unusual phrase, isn't it?" the prosecutor said.
"Yes," Dowler said.
"And how did you react to that?," the prosecutor asked.
"And I was kinda like, 'OK ...How?' And he wouldn't tell me. Then I asked him again and he still wouldn't tell me," Dowler said.
Audra Dowler, whose shorter, darker hair made her apper significantly different from when she last appeared in court, answered most questions with a "yes" or "no" and was calm throughout the proceeding, 7NEWS reported. She admitted that both she and her husband were often frustrated when Tanner had his crying spells but she told the court that she would never hurt the baby.
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/2643169/detail.html
Rocky Mountain News
Wife: Dowler cried over abuse
By Berny Morson, Rocky Mountain News
November 18, 2003
BOULDER - Joseph Dowler cried himself to sleep the night he delivered the abuse that finally turned his 8-week-old son into a vegetable.
"He was basically sobbing," Audra Dowler, the mother, said of the conversation when Joseph crawled into bed early on the morning of Oct. 2. "He said, 'I think I broke our son.' "
Audra Dowler was a key witness Monday in the trial of her husband, who is charged with first-degree murder in the death of their baby, Tanner, in October 2002.
Audra Dowler pleaded guilty in June to child abuse for failing to get help after Tanner endured weeks of beatings. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
She appeared before the jury in blue jail fatigues and shackles.
In nearly two hours of testimony, the 19-year- old described how she rejected a baby she never wanted. She spent as much time as possible at work, leaving Tanner with a father who was growing extremely frustrated with the crying infant.
Doctors have said previously that the baby had 14 broken bones, burns on both feet and was shaken so hard that parts of his eyeballs had separated. The cause of death was brain injury.
Audra Dowler testified that she initially wanted an abortion when she learned she was pregnant in late 2001.
"We didn't have a stable place to live, and I was still growing up myself," said Audra, who was 18 at the time.
But Joseph Dowler, who was 33 when she became pregnant, wanted a family.
"I saw how excited Joe would be to have a baby of his own and it would make my mother happy," Audra said. "So I decided with help I could do it."
At the time, the Dowlers were not yet married. They were living in her camper truck, which they parked frequently at the Tomahawk Truck Stop in Brighton.
The Dowlers established a more permanent residence by renting a travel trailer parked at the Circle Motel in Lafayette. They married in June 2002.
But while she delivered normally, Audra said she never bonded with Tanner.
"Not the way a normal mother would," she testified. "But I did love him in my own way. . . . I didn't spend a lot of time around him, but I did want to see him grow up and become something."
Fellow workers at Pizza Hut described Audra's indifference to the baby in testimony last week. She referred to the child as "it" and the "thing," and at one point said she wanted to tie Tanner to a ceiling fan.
"I have a kind of psychotic, shock-factor sense of humor," Audra Dowler said, referring to her comments about the baby. She did it "just to see the reaction," she said.
But, she said, "I never physically hurt my son." The trailer didn't have a ceiling fan, she added.
Joseph Dowler's defense attorneys have suggested that Audra might have been responsible for Tanner's abuse.
Audra said she saw Joseph lift the baby by the neck or jaw on one occasion, but she never witnessed the beatings that broke bones.
Audra said she knew Joseph had an explosive temper and was capable of hurting Tanner. She was saving up to send Joseph to an anger management course, possibly for his birthday, she said.
Asked by District Attorney Mary Keenan if she still loved Joseph, Audra responded with a crisp "yes, ma'am."
Joseph never explained what he had done the night he crawled into bed crying that he had broken the baby, Audra said.
"It was, like, 'OK, how?' He wouldn't tell me. I asked him again. He wouldn't tell me," she said.
He later told doctors he had shaken the baby from side to side on its back.
Audra said she recommended getting medical attention, but Joseph delayed throughout the following day, fearing he would be accused of child abuse.
About 36 hours elapsed before they took Tanner to Community Medical Center in Lafayette. By that time, he was barely breathing, doctors said.
Dr. Michael VonGortler described Tanner as "gravely ill."
"Gravely ill means one notch before death," VonGortler said.
Images of her here
http://images.ibsys.com/2002/1009/1711016.jpg http://images.google.com/images?q=+%22AUDRA+DOWLER%22&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&as_qdr=all&tab=wi She looks a LOT different here
http://images.ibsys.com/2003/1117/2643194_200X150.jpg
