Rodney David Clough allegedly pushed two-year-old’s face into sink filled with hot water, court hears

A court has heard expert details on the injuries suffered by the boy known as Little Jimmy after his uncle’s bid for release on bail.

Criminal neglect accused Rodney David Clough. Picture: Facebook

A man accused of scalding his two-year-old nephew allegedly submerged the child’s head in a sink filled with hot water, a court has heard.

Rodney David Clough, 41, has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated causing harm with intent and criminal neglect over the August 8, 2022 incident.

In his decision to refuse Mr Clough release on bail ahead of a trial next year, Judge Paul Slattery said the allegations included that the child, known by the pseudonym Little Jimmy, had his face dunked into a sink of hot water.

“A forensic paediatrician examined the infant child and opined that the burn injuries were consistent with him having been submerged into a body of hot liquid to a depth of between 5.5 and 6cm,” he said.

“The forensic paediatrician opined that because of the partial immersion and scalding to the infant’s upper chest, it is most likely that the bathroom sink was involved. That was also consistent with other facial injuries, especially to the nostrils of the child.”

He said allegations the boy would have only needed to be submerged for between 1-2 seconds if the liquid was above 60C, or less time if the water was as hot as 70C.

He said the sink taps were 130cm from the ground and “well above the complainant’s reach”, and the forensic paediatrician had excluded the shower as a cause of the injuries.

Judge Slattery said the expert also opined that the injuries to the child’s nostrils were caused by “the infant’s face being pushed into the basin and the nostrils of the child being affected by the ingestion of hot fluid”.

He said allegations the boy suffered scald injuries and also had swelling and bruising, a cut top lip, six small circular yellow-brown bruises on his forehead and “other forms of bruising” which were likely to have occurred before the scalding incident.

He said doctors also found the boy was “very drowsy” and “largely unresponsive other than being reactive to pain”.

“Hospital staff identified that the infant complainant had a concerning lack of consciousness and alertness which could not be explained by any of the anaesthetics which had been administered,” he said.

Testing showed he had levels of risperidone – a prescription medication used to treat mental health conditions – “well in excess of any dosage recommended for a child”.

At the time, the court heard the child was staying at an Enfield motel with their mother, Emma Short. She had been out for a period, before returning to the accommodation just after 10am.

Three minutes later Mr Clough and Ms Short left with the child wrapped in a blanket. The child was taken to a medical centre and an ambulance was called.

Rodney David Clough. Picture: Facebook

Ms Short had also been charged with criminal neglect, but those charges were later dropped.

Judge Slattery said Mr Clough and the child’s mother had been in a relationship at the time.

“The inference on the evidence … is that the accused was an adult alone with the infant at that time,” he said.

He said text messages had also indicated Mr Clough had a “sense of panic” which was “in relation to what had (allegedly) occurred with the child”.

In refusing bail, he said he had concerns about Mr Clough’s prior offending, his proposed bail address and said the charges against he accused were of “such a high level of seriousness that bail in any form is not indicated”.

At a hearing last week, Andrew Williams, for Mr Clough, refuted the level of injury suffered by the child, suggesting that the child was scalded but had not list skin and had no ongoing physical issues.

Outside court, Mr Clough’s sister Teresa Clough said she had not previously heard what was alleged to have happened to her nephew.

She said she was “disappointed” and “upset and sad” about the allegations.

Another of Mr Clough’s siblings, Rex Clough, said he was “appalled” by the allegations of what happened to his nephew.

“I’m angry, I’m upset,” he said.

Clough will return to court in September.