Sentence for baby beating blasted
Exclusive Irate grandfather says giving young dad home detention a ‘huge joke’
Aman who beat his baby son around his face and head, then jammed a solid object in his mouth causing significant injuries, has been sentenced to nine months’ home detention. The sentence has been called “a huge joke” by the young victim's grandfather, who wanted to see the violent abuser jailed for the “disgusting” attack.
The 20-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was sentenced in the Hamilton District Court on Monday after pleading guilty to a charge of wounding with reckless disregard following an attack on his baby son early last year.
He also admitted assaulting the baby's mother with a weapon, and six further charges of male assaults female relating to her and another woman.
The names of the man’s young son and now expartner cannot be published.
Court documents revealed the details of the vicious attack that left the 9-month-old hospitalised with lacerations around his mouth, welts on both sides of his head, multiple cheekbone fractures, a torn bottom lip and tongue and facial grazes.
The baby’s eyelids were so swollen that he could barely open them.
The man’s then-partner was cooking breakfast and he took the baby into the bedroom after becoming frustrated with his continual grizzling — the result of teething.
Alone in the room, the man struck the baby repeatedly on his face and head and grabbed him by the chin and mouth to stifle his cries.
He then forced something solid in the infant's mouth causing a tear between his tongue and base of his mouth.
From the next room the baby's mother could hear her partner say: “F*** up, shut up you little c***.”
She threatened to call the police as the attack on the baby continued. Her partner then turned on her. Family members arrived soon after and took the baby to the doctor.
At sentencing Judge Denise Clark revealed the man had assaulted his former partner a number of
times — including while she was pregnant.
The Crown sought a prison sentence for the violent offender, starting at three years.
However after giving him credit for remorse and the promise of employment, she sentenced him to home detention and ordered him to complete 160 hours of community work.
“It does seem to me with the right environment you are able to behave in quite unobstructive ways,” she told him. “This is a long sentence for you, but it is a sentence that allows you to address the needs you do have.”
The baby’s grandfather told the Herald after sentencing the court had “failed” his family.
“If my daughter hadn’t stopped him, he could have killed my grandson,” he said. “Home detention — this is a joke, a huge joke.
“There has been no justice for my grandson whatsoever — it’s a slap on the hand, they might as well have given him a cup of tea and a big piece of cake as well.
“We were expecting a jail term — I’m not happy at all,” he said.
He was also angry that the offender could not be named publicly.
Under the Criminal Procedure Act young victims of crime cannot be identified in the media.
This means the name of the baby’s father cannot be published.
“Why should he get to hide? We don’t want any of this kept secret,” the grandfather said.
The incident and aftermath had a “huge” impact on the baby’s maternal family. “Now the person who did this to him gets to be at his own home, see his family when he wants, eat what he wants — when my grandson is missing out.
“He’s missing out because this fellow did what he did . . . this feels like egg on our faces. I feel let down, there’s been no justice whatsoever — it’s just not right.”
The Herald has contacted police to see if there is any plan to appeal the sentence.
Holly Carrington, a spokeswoman for domestic abuse charity Shine, was shocked by the case.
“Nine months home detention and community work seem a totally inadequate sentence,” she said.
Victim advocate Ruth Money called on police to “immediately” appeal the “weak” sentence.
“It’s bad enough that he hit an adult, but to do what he did to a baby and get sentenced to home detention is absolutely atrocious,” she said.
“No wonder we have such a bad child-abuse rate in New Zealand — this is an epidemic and it is being enabled by judges giving such weak sentences.”