A man has been convicted of murdering his two-week-old son in a special care baby unit at Yeovil Hospital in Somerset, causing catastrophic injuries including a shattered skull and broken neck. Daniel Gunter, 27, carried out the attack while nurses were working less than five metres away, but the assault was so swift and silent that staff did not realise what was happening.
Experts described the injuries to Brendon Staddon as similar to those seen in a fall from a high building. The baby, born prematurely at 33 weeks, also suffered broken legs, ankles, wrists, and extensive bruising. After the attack in the early hours of 5 March last year, both parents left the unit for a cigarette as medical staff tried to save Brendon.
Gunter's former partner, Sophie Staddon, 21, was found not guilty of causing or allowing the death. The prosecution had alleged she must have known the threat Gunter posed. Police believe a possible motive for the killing was Gunter's fear that Staddon might move to a mother and baby unit where he could not stay.
Detective Chief Inspector Nadine Partridge of Avon and Somerset Police described Gunter as selfish and said he laughed and joked in the dock during the trial at Bristol Crown Court. She noted that in her 22-year career she had never seen such injuries inflicted on a premature baby, adding that Gunter may have held Brendon by the legs and struck him against hard objects.
A child safeguarding practice review is examining whether more should have been done to protect Brendon, given Gunter's history of violence and controlling behaviour. Social services had been considering removing the baby from the parents due to concerns about their ability to care for him. Gunter had been cautioned for battery of a previous partner and was sometimes violent to Staddon.
During the trial, the court heard that Gunter repeatedly took Brendon out of his incubator despite staff telling him not to, and was reprimanded for jiggling, poking, and rubbing the baby. Nurses twice put security on alert when Gunter became angry. After the attack, Gunter told police: 'She's my witness and I'm her witness,' and urged Staddon to 'stick together' as he was led away.
