Many questions remain over death of baby

More than a month has passed, but the people of Southwest Nebraska know little more now than they did Jan. 7 about the cause the death for 3-month-old Kyla Martinez in rural Palisade.

Word of the tragedy spread on the first Friday of 2005 when the death was reported to authorities by Community Hospital of McCook. However, it was not until the following Tuesday, Jan. 11, that officials confirmed that an investigation was under way.

In that news release, Hitchcock County Attorney D. Eugene Garner said the baby's body had been taken to the Scottsbluff Regional Medical Center for an autopsy. At the time, Garner explained that, except in very limited circumstances, an autopsy is performed on any person younger than 19 years of age who dies a sudden death.

That announcement was 30 days ago. Since then there have been only two more reports to the public. One appeared in the McCook Daily Gazette on Thursday, Jan. 13, the other on Thursday, Jan. 21. However, neither report contained significant new information. What authorities did say, in both announcements, was that they were awaiting autopsy reports and lab results.

The long wait is terribly frustrating for all concerned. Officials have said, in explaining the delay, that, "This is not CSI." Their comments were in reference to America's top-rated television show, CSI, which features a crime scene investigation team in Las Vegas.

Even though it's true that Western Nebraska does not have elaborate crime scene investigative resources, we can surely do better than we have in the case of Kyla Martinez.

Many questions come to mind: What's holding up the autopsy? Are key pieces of evidence missing? Are there any suspects? Were there any witnesses?

For the sake of the memory of this young and innocent victim, Kyla Martinez, we hope that authorities are relentless in their pursuit of truth. This region may lack the resources of major city investigative units, but our desire for justice is just as great.