Illawarra dad jailed after assaulting 10-week-old baby, fracturing her ribs and wrist
A magistrate has slammed a young father who fractured seven of his baby girl’s ribs saying she she should have been safe but was “seriously assaulted by one of the two most important people in her young life.”
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An Illawarra dad who assaulted and “karate-chopped” his 10-week-old baby girl has been jailed, with a judge saying he breached his daughter’s trust while she was dependent on him for “care and protection”.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, faced the NSW District Court in Wollongong for sentencing on Tuesday, after he physically abused the girl on multiple occasions in August 2019, leaving her with fractures to her ribs, a fractured right wrist and visible facial bruising.
Judge Chris O’Brien sentenced the man, now 21, to four years and six months jail with a non-parole period of two years and 10 months, saying he was immature and ill-equipped to deal with the pressure of parenting.
“These offences occurred in the home, somewhere the community legitimately expects (the baby) would be safe, secure and protected,” he said.
“Instead she was seriously assaulted by one of the two most important people in her young life.”
The man has been on remand in custody since he was arrested on October 1, 2019, after employees from Family and Community Services (FACS) noticed bruises on the baby girl’s face.
In documents tendered to the court, it was revealed the man and his partner had come under the attention of FACS before the baby was born, due to concerns about drug use in the household.
On August 22, the man visited the FACS office in Coniston with the baby to discuss housing issues with a caseworker. During the visit, however, the caseworker noticed bruising under one of the baby’s eyes and on her forehead that hadn’t been there during a visit to the family’s home one week earlier.
The baby girl was removed from her mum and dad’s care the following day and underwent medical examination. The tests revealed the baby had seven fractured ribs, all at different stages of healing, which the court on Tuesday heard meant they had occurred on different occasions.
In handing down his sentence on Tuesday, Judge O’Brien said the fractures were “caused by the offender deliberately applying significant force (to the child), well above that of the normal handling of an infant.”
The tests also revealed the baby had a broken wrist, as well as the facial bruising, which were attributed to assaults from her father.
The man was subsequently interviewed by police, where he blamed the facial bruising on the baby herself, saying she had “thrown her head back” and hit a door frame.
Doubtful of the man’s accounts, police bugged the baby’s family home, where they heard her father talking about his daughter’s injuries, and that he had “karate-chopped” her torso and squeezed her ribs.
In court on Tuesday, Judge O’Brien said that the man showed little remorse, and that in an interview with a psychologist he said he handled the role of parenthood “accurately and appropriately”.
“He could not be more mistaken,” Judge O’Brien said.
With time already served the man will be eligible for release to parole on July 31, 2022.