A FATHER has been found guilty of killing his 14-week-old baby daughter, who died after suffering a catastrophic brain injury.
Christopher Easey, 31, of Ely Road, Little Thetford, Cambridgeshire, denied murdering baby Eleanor but was convicted of manslaughter by a jury at Norwich Crown Court this week.
He was also found guilty of neglect.
His co-defendant, Eleanor's mother Carly Easey, 36, of Elizabeth Drive, Chedburgh, Suffolk, was found guilty of one count of neglect.
'Failed on unimaginable scale'
The investigation into the tot's death found that as well as the head injury that led to her death, the three-month-old had sustained three bleeds on her brain, suffered 31 fractures and was malnourished.
Police also discovered the pair had fed Eleanor custard cream biscuits and lemon cheesecake, gave her squash to drink and left her home alone.
"Eleanor's parents, the very people who should have protected and loved her above everything and everyone else, failed her on an unimaginable scale from the moment she was born," said Det Insp Lewis Craske, of the Norfolk and Suffolk Major Investigation Team.
Catalogue of injuries
Both parents denied six counts against them that dated from September 12 to December 20, 2019.
During the trial, the court heard how Eleanor was taken to hospital on December 18, 2019 after being found unresponsive at home.
A CT scan showed she had a significant head injury and recent bleeding between her skull and brain.
She was transferred from the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital to Addenbrooke's Hospital, where doctors confirmed she had suffered a catastrophic brain injury.
Sadly, she died on December 20, 2019.
Tests showed that Eleanor had suffered bleeds to her brain on three separate occasions, the most recent being within the 48 hours before she was admitted to hospital, as well as multiple retinal haemorrhages.
Her injuries were consistent with non-accidental head trauma, possibly due to shaking, impact or a combination of both.
A Home Office post-mortem established the cause of death as a head injury of the shaking/impact type.
It also revealed multiple historic metaphyseal fractures and multiple rib fractures and found she was malnourished.
Bruises and scratches
During the investigation, officers discovered that Carly Easey had concealed her pregnancy and Eleanor spent the first few weeks of her life in intensive care at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn.
In October, health visitors noticed bruising and scratches to Eleanor's face, which her mother said were due to an ill-fitting car seat and the scratches were self-inflicted.
In November 2019, the family moved to Morton-on-the-Hill, Norfolk.
The couple's friends, work colleagues and family members told detectives during the investigation how the parents fed Eleanor custard cream biscuits and lemon cheesecake, gave her squash to drink and left her home alone.
The couple were initially arrested on suspicion of assault GBH in December 2019 but following the findings of the post-mortem, they were re-arrested a month later on suspicion of murder.
When asked by medics how Eleanor had sustained the fatal injuries, Christopher Easey said he had been forced to brake suddenly with Eleanor in the car on December 18.
He also claimed she would sometimes bang her head on her cot.
A police examination of the couple's car found no evidence that it had been involved in a collision or a situation in which the driver had forcibly applied the brakes.
In her interview, Carly Easey couldn't account for Eleanor's injuries other than the bruising to Eleanor's face.
While both parents were initially charged with murder, evidence showed Carly Easey was not present at the time Eleanor had suffered the brain injury that proved to be fatal, and prosecutors subsequently dropped the murder charge against her.
'Deserved so much better'
"[Eleanor] was neglected for much, if not all, of her short life. She deserved so much better," added Det Insp Craske.
"This has been a desperately sad, incredibly complex and highly emotive investigation for me and all those who have worked so very hard on bringing this case to court."
The parents will be sentenced on April 29, 2022.
