Couple go down for poisoning baby

[apache]

With salt? something doesn't make sense here. A couple adopted a little boy (cute as f**k) then apparently poison him with salt because he was naughty! surely a more traditional punishment would've been adequate

[Plotloss]

The Torygraph said:

A childless couple have each been jailed for five years after killing a three-year-old boy they had planned to adopt when he failed to meet their expectations of comfortable family living. Ian and Angela Gay were cleared of murdering Christian Blewitt but were convicted of manslaughter. Christian died of a head injury and was found to have excess levels of salt in his blood. The prosecution claimed the married couple, of Lutley Lane, Hayley Green, in Halesowen, West Midlands, force-fed Christian up to four teaspoons of salt as a punishment. A jury of six men and six women sitting at Worcester Crown Court took more than eight hours to convict the pair of poisoning with salt and causing him a fatal head injury. The child was admitted to hospital five weeks into a trial placement at their former home in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. The couple maintained throughout the seven-week trial that they did not know how Christian came to have a raised sodium level in his blood. The court heard evidence from numerous medical experts but it may never be known what happened to Christian. The prosecution claimed the couple became disenchanted with Christian when he rejected Mr Gay. The couple stood arm in arm in the dock and showed no emotion as the foreman returned the unanimous verdicts.

Emotionless at getting 5 years custodial?

Guilty as sin and then some.

[Tyre Smoke]

Salt is (quite obviously) lethal to under developed internal organs. We are extremely careful how much we give our son. I've heard of this before, something about a chavish couple giving their baby some sort of adult breakfast cereal because it was cheaper than baby food - but had shedloads of salt content. In that case it was ignorance, but I guess if the wanted to commit infanticide they thought it might be undetectable?

[rude-boy]

apache said:

With salt? something doesn't make sense here. A couple adopted a little boy (cute as f**k) then apparently poison him with salt because he was naughty! surely a more traditional punishment would've been adequate

So long as there is absolutley no reasonable doubt that they did this, after trial, I'm afraid that there isn't any punishment harsh enough for them that could be imposed under current laws.

Sick

Edited as I have now read Plotloss's post.

So there is no reasonable doubt that they killed him, just how they did it then by the sounds of it.

Worst thing is I remember sitting behind Counsel at Worcester CC a few years ago when a client of the firm I was training with was sent down for 6 years for a kidnapp and GBH (hobbled the bloke al la Misery). Neither client nor 'victim' were the sort most would like to hang around with.

Then these two get 5 years do killing a diffenceless child that they could easily have just handed back to the Local Authority...

Now you know one of the reasons I don't touch criminal work.

>> Edited by rude-boy on Thursday 13th January 17:08

[apache]

That's just it though, the docs are not sure wether it was this or severe shaking of the child that caused its death. we live in a sick world

[birdbrain]

My brother and his chavvy wife give their baby crisps for lunch.

[Plotloss]

birdbrain said:

My brother and his chavvy wife give their baby crisps for lunch.

There was a woman in 'er indoors post natal group that used to feed a 13 month old liquidised delivery Pizza...

[BliarOut]

Tyre Smoke said:

Salt is (quite obviously) lethal to under developed internal organs. We are extremely careful how much we give our son. I've heard of this before, something about a chavish couple giving their baby some sort of adult breakfast cereal because it was cheaper than baby food - but had shedloads of salt content. In that case it was ignorance, but I guess if the wanted to commit infanticide they thought it might be undetectable?

IIRC, it was Smash they gave the child. That was a case of ignorance not malice.

[sparkythecat]

In 18 months time they'll be acquitted on appeal when the scientist who measured the salt levels in the blood is found to be an unreliable witness.

Following their release, there will be a thread on here debating whether or not they should be entitled to compensation.

[Tyre Smoke]

Health visitor says at 1 year old our son can eat what we eat. So, at McDonalds he gets 1 or possibly 2 chips. Not a Big Mac meal. He eats what we eat, but with the salt and other 'bad' stuff monitored.

Believe me, some of the people I know would take the Health Visitor at her word and be buying happy meals and frying everything - actually that is what happens. No wonder kids are fat these days.

[birdbrain]

Plotloss said:

There was a woman in 'er indoors post natal group that used to feed a 13 month old liquidised delivery Pizza...

Jeeeezus. Some people just astound me with their cluelessness.

[telecat]

sparkythecat said:

In 18 months time they'll be acquitted on appeal when the scientist who measured the salt levels in the blood is found to be an unreliable witness. Following their release, there will be a thread on here debating whether or not they should be entitled to compensation.

I'm betting it too. This sounds like a problem that an "expert" thought up a solution to!

[deckster]

birdbrain said:

Plotloss said: There was a woman in 'er indoors post natal group that used to feed a 13 month old liquidised delivery Pizza... Jeeeezus. Some people just astound me with their cluelessness.

Abso-bloody-lutely. At 13 months the kid'll be quite capable of eating a piece of pizza whole.