Wed, 16 Nov 2016
The defendant Easton Robinson, aged 39, was convicted of the manslaughter of his own son Eden, aged 2 months. The jury rejected the defendant’s evidence that he had done nothing to harm his son and were satisfied that, on the morning of the 8th November 2014, the defendant had deliberately and violently shaken him in anger.
The shaking caused a serious, traumatic injury to his brain stem resulting in cardio-respiratory arrest. After intensive efforts to revive him, first by the ambulance crew and then by the medical and nursing staff at the hospital, his circulation was restored. But the injury had caused catastrophic and irreversible damage to his brain, which was not survivable. Life support was withdrawn on 11 November and Eden died in his mother’s arms later the same day.
The defendant was sentenced by Cox J to 12 years imprisonment.
The trial lasted 6 weeks. The prosecution called expert witnesses in the fields of haematology, neuroradiology, neuropathology, neurosurgery, ophthalmic pathology, osteo-articular pathology, forensic pathology and peri-natal pathology.
Click here to view the full story reprted by the BBC and Daily Mail.
You can view Criminal Law Barrister Jonas Hankin QC's profile here.
