The babysitter accused of abusing a one-year-old boy has been arrested and charged in Oregon after social media users demanded action to be taken by authorities and officials.

Markell Hilaire, 27, is facing charges of criminal mistreatment and assault for an incident parents Joshua Marbury and Alicia Quinney claimed left their son, Jacob, with a bruise shaped like a hand print on his face.

Hilaire - who is a friend of the child's father - was arrested Friday after thousands of people shared the heartbreaking photos of Jacob across social media when his parents said authorities would not arrest him over the alleged abuse.

The couple, from Sherwood, say they returned home in March to find their son screaming and the babysitter fast asleep.

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An Oregon couple claim their baby (pictured) was left with horror injuries at the hands of their babysitter – including a bruise shaped like a hand print

Markell Hilaire (above) is facing charges of criminal mistreatment and assault for an incident parents Joshua Marbury and Alicia Quinney claimed left their son, Jacob, with a bruise shaped like a hand print on his face

Hilaire (above) was arrested Friday after thousands of people shared the heartbreaking photos of Jacob across social media after his parents say authorities would not first arrest him over the alleged abuse

They say Jacob was covered in bruises the next morning and they reported the incident to police.

However, two months later with no criminal charges being filed, they felt the authorities had let them down.

Jacob's father Joshua Marbury took to Facebook to vent about what he believed to be a previous court ruling from stopping his son's alleged abuser from being charged – and posted pictures of Jacob in the bath with extensive bruising on his face.

Marbury was referring to a 2012 ruling in the Oregon Court of Appeals which prosecutors say make it harder to file charges in cases of abuse where the victims can't speak, according to OregonLive.

In order to convict a child abuser of felony assault or criminal mistreatment, according to the website, prosecutors have to prove the victim suffered a 'physical injury' and suffered 'substantial pain'.

This is difficult to prove if victims are unable to explain their suffering, according to an an earlier article on the ruling.

The couple, from Sherwood, say they returned home in March to find their son screaming and the babysitter, now identified as Hilaire (above), fast asleep

The 27-year-old turned himself in Friday following a grand jury indictment. Hilaire (above) remains in the Washington County Jail with bail set at $10,000

Prosecutors have said that children under five are often unable to articulate 'substantial pain' and this is also true of older children with developmental issues or those afraid to speak out against their abusers, KATU2 reported.

The ruling means that adults are able to get away with hurting children – as long as the injuries are not too bad as the ruling says bruises, welts and shallow cuts are not enough to prosecute.

'Something needs to be done. NOBODY can just hit a child and more to just get away with it because the child can't verbally tell you.'

His post quickly went viral and has since attracted more than 150,000 shares, Marbury said multiple doctors told them that the bruising on Jacob showed a hand print.

He also added that a detective informed them at the time that the injuries could have killed Jacob.

Jacob's mother said that when she came home that night more than two months ago and saw Jacob's black eye, she assumed he had somehow drawn on his face.

Jacob's mother Alice Quinney (pictured together above) says that she noticed Jacob's black eye immediately but thought he had somehow got marker on his face

'I thought maybe marker got on his face or something. When he turned over, his whole right side of his face -- black and blue,' she told OregonLive.

But then she also found marks on his ear, arm and back.

And although his bruises have now healed, she says the incident has changed her son – and left her terrified of leaving him alone with anyone.

'He's always been a mama's boy, very much but since this happened he's been a mama's boy times 100,' she said.

'This isn't something we can move on from.'

She wants the law to change, she said at the time.

Hilaire's aunt told The Oregonian that her nephew was drinking the night of the alleged abuse and she criticized the parents for leaving the boy in his care.

Hilaire remains in the Washington County Jail with bail set at $10,000.