SALINE COUNTY, IL - There are new developments in the battle between local prosecutors and the medical experts they need to put criminals in prison.

22-month-old Brynden Gibson died in 2006 from injuries consistent with being shaken. Peter Kerrigan was charged in Williamson County with first degree murder and involuntary manslaughter, but the murder charges were dropped when St. Louis County medical examiners refused to testify in the case.  Kerrigan eventually pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter and could be out of prison in less than three years.

Local 6's is learning this problem goes much deeper. The Saline County state's attorney says he's having the same problem with the St. Louis medical examiner's office.

4-year-old Jessica James died from head trauma last June in a St. Louis hospital.  The criminal case about her death is stuck in court because St. Louis medical examiners again are refusing to cooperate, according to Saline County states attorney, Mike Henshaw.  "I feel like we're held hostage.  I think we're all like Chuck. I know the problems they had."

Chuck Garnati is the Williamson County states attorney.  He tried to make the St. Louis County chief medical examiner Dr. Mary Case testify about what killed 22-month-old Gibson. Garnati read the doctors response, "It said Dr. Mary Case she wrote back to me, '"I will not be able to be involved with your case therefor it is be I not meet with you."' She wouldn't even meet with us."

In a phone interview Local 6 contacted Dr. Case to ask her why she will not cooperate.  She said, "I do many of these examinations and I don't like to have to go to court for every time I examine one of these brains, and because of that kind of business I have stopped examining those brains because of him (Garnati) and other people who require me to take an entire day off work and go to their trial."

Brynden Gibson's mother says it's unjust her son's killer is getting away with murder, because of a communication breakdown between Dr. Case and prosecutors.  "I'm really upset about a lot of this. We really don't have any recourse.  If we send subpoenas they don't honor them," Henshaw said.

Brynden Gibson's mother, Rebecca Gibson, plans to talk with representative John Bradley sometime next week. She wants to focus on improving communication between the St. Louis County medical examiners and lawyers.

Bradley believes allowing the medical examiners to give recorded testimony could fix the problem. However, at this point, recorded testimonies are not allowed in Illinois criminal cases because defense attorney's can't cross examine the witness.