Gold Coast father who shook 8 week old baby gets 5 years, to be released after 12 months

A FATHER who shook his eight-week-old baby until it was close to death will be released from jail in time to celebrate the first birthday of his second child to the same woman.

A father who shook his baby near to death has been sentenced to jail.

A FATHER who shook his eight-week-old baby until it was close to death will be released from jail in time to celebrate the first birthday of his second child to the same woman.

The 26-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was convicted of grievous bodily harm in the Southport District Court yesterday after he shook his young son in April 2013, when he would not stop crying.

The child has serious brain damage, feeds mainly through a tube in his stomach and is almost blind as a result of the shaking.

He will never be able to walk on his own and will require surgery to sit in a wheelchair.

The man was yesterday sentenced to five years imprisonment, but will be released after 12 months.

The court was told he had been living with his mother as part of his bail conditions, but was allowed to see his son daily.

The boy’s mother is heavily pregnant with the pair’s second child and told the court she wanted the man to be at home with her rather than in jail.

Until yesterday’s sentencing, the man spent three nights a week with his partner and severely disabled son, following a period of no-contact when he was first charged.

The court was told child safety services are considering ceasing intervention with the family.

The incident happened when the man, 23 at the time, was looking after his baby in the upstairs room of the home he shared with the baby’s mother, who was downstairs.

The baby was crying but the man believed he had settled him before realising the child had gone “limp”, the court heard.

The child experienced multiple haemorrhages and suffered cardiac arrest as a result of the shaking.

Once taken to the hospital, he started breathing only after eight minutes of compressions.

The crown prosecutor told the court the condition of the child “could only be described as catastrophic”.

The young boy now has limited communication and cerebral palsy, epilepsy and a significantly shorter life expectancy than many children.

The court was told all his injuries were consistent with a baby who was shaken without having their head supported.

The court was told the man and his partner had undergone counselling since the event and he had reunited with the woman he had been with since he was 21.

Judge Katherine McGinness said despite the fact the man initially lied to police about what happened to the child, he had now accepted responsibility for his actions.

“The nature of the injuries are horrendous and the impact on your son’s quality of life is devastating for him and you and your family,” Judge McGinness said.

She said the injuries to the child may have occurred because of the man’s “immaturity or frustration or ignorance of the vulnerability” of his son.

“It appears that for a combination of these reasons you weren’t able to cope responsibility with a distressed infant on that particular occasion,” she said.

She said despite the fact the man had actively engaged with his son’s therapy and was by all accounts a “gentle” and “devoted father”, the court must not loose site of the victim, Judge McGinness added.

“You and your partner have another child on the way and everyone has been working positively for you to reunite and live as a loving family,” she said.

“Your mother and partner’s mother are clearly very supportive of you ... this is a tragic case where you, (your partner) and (the child) will continue to suffer into the future, particularly while you must serve a period of imprisonment.

“It will not benefit you or your family whatsoever, but ... (we must not) lose sight of the fact there is a victim in all of this, which is your son.”

Bravehearts founder Hetty Johnson said the case was a matter for child safety.

“We would hope they take this seriously as human life and quality of life is at stake,” she said.