Charges finally filed in abuse case of 1-year-old

A babysitter who appeared to have escaped charges for allegedly hitting a 1-year-old has been arrested and charged.

Markell Hilaire pleaded not guilty Monday to accusations that he assaulted Jacob Marbury in March, leaving him with a black eye and other marks.

Hilaire was not initially charged because Oregon state law required that the victim of child abuse was in substantial pain and the one-year-old could not talk to tell anyone he was hurt or in pain.

The boy's father's May 20th Facebook post over the frustration of a lack of charges went viral with more than 408,000 shares.

Joshua Marbury wrote:  "Something needs to be done. NOBODY can just hit a child and more to just get away with it because the child cant verbally tell you."

Hilaire was arrested on Friday.  He faces charges of criminal mistreatment and assault.

The prosecutor's office issued a statement asking for a change in the state's child abuse law, saying:  "Under current Oregon law, animals are more protected from physical injury than many children."