MOUNT HOLLY, NEW JERSERY - A Georgia man will not face trial for the death of his daughter, who died seven years after being shaken and injured by him. <br>
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Superior Court Judge John Ameida declared Lawrence Duncan a free man Friday, saying prosecutors should have told him he could ultimately face a murder charge when they entered into a plea bargain with him in 1996. <br>
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Duncan served almost 3.5 years in prison after pleading guilty to endangering the welfare of a child for shaking his then-infant daughter, Tanzhane, in September 1995 because she would not stop crying. <br>
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The girl was injured and remained in a vegetative state until she died on Jan. 6, 2002. Last April, prosecutors filed a murder charge against Duncan, who after his 2000 prison release had moved to Georgia, remarried, had another child and took a job as a chef in Savannah. <br>
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Prosecutors alleged the pneumonia that killed Tanzhane resulted from shaken baby syndrome. <br>
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Duncan's lawyer said the defense and prosecution at the time viewed Duncan's 1996 guilty plea as the disposition of the case. The judge found it was believed then the girl's injuries would eventually prove fatal. <br>
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The prosecutor's office has not decided whether to appeal the judge's ruling.
