Apex child in coma; police investigate

Apex, N.C. — A 3-year-old Apex boy is in a coma at Duke University Hospital, and police have searched his family's home for any evidence of abuse, according to a search warrant.

Adam Stein was taken to WakeMed on March 19 with severe head trauma and was transferred to Duke Hospital after undergoing emergency surgery and developing complications, according to the search warrant. His parents, Philip and Michele Stein, told paramedics and police that he had fallen down the stairs earlier that day and then couldn't be awakened from a nap.

Medical experts said the boy's injuries weren't consistent with a fall down the staircase of the family's home, and police noted two previous allegations of abuse and neglect had been filed with Wake County Child Protective Services. In January, he was taken to the North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center at UNC Hospitals with burns on his hands, and the following month, day care workers noticed he had bruises on his back and leg.

No abuse was substantiated in either incident.

The Steins adopted Adam from an orphanage in China last November, according to the search warrant.

The couple said an attorney advised them not to speak with police, and they also instructed nurses at Duke Hospital not to discuss their son's condition with investigators, according to the search warrant.

Investigators searched the Steins' home at 121 Homegate Circle and seized pictures and a phone bill.