A 27-year-old man, Daniel Gunter, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for m¥rdering his two-week-old son, Brendon Staddon, at Yeovil District Hospital in Somerset, United Kingdom. He must serve at least 20 years before being eligible for parole.
The court heard that Gunter inflicted “c@tastrophic” inj¥ries on his premature newborn, who was being treated in a special care unit. Medical experts testified that Brendon’s skull was sh@ttered, his neck and jaw were br%ken, and he sustained multiple fractures to his limbs and wrists.
While nurses rushed the infant’s lifeless body to the resuscitation area, Gunter and the child’s 21-year-old mother, Sophie Staddon, reportedly stepped outside for a sm%ke. Staddon was later acquitted of m¥rder and of causing or allowing the de@th of a child.
During sentencing at Bristol Crown Court, Justice Swift described the a+sault as “premeditated” and condemned Gunter for inflicting f@tal inj¥ries without calling for help. “Very severe force was brought to bear on Brendon. His skull was sh@ttered, and his neck was br%ken,” the judge stated. Experts told the court the inj¥ries were consistent with the baby being swung by the legs and struck against a hard surface multiple times.
Social workers had reportedly planned to remove the infant from his parents’ care at birth due to concerns about Gunter’s vi%lent and controlling behaviour. Witnesses, including his aunt, testified that Gunter was rough and impatient with the child. Hospital staff also said he repeatedly ignored medical advice, removing Brendon from his incubator without authorization and tampering with his feeding tube.
The couple were arrested outside the hospital shortly after the incident. Both denied h@rming the baby, with Gunter insisting, “At no stage did I do anything to Brendon that could have caused him any inj¥ry,” while Staddon told police, “I love him. He was my everything.”
In a victim impact statement, Gunter’s father, Simon Gunter, described Brendon as “so tiny but so beautiful,” expressing the family’s heartbreak.
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