Dad 'killed eight-week-old baby by shaking him with the force of a car accident' – The Mirror
Abel Jax Mailey was less than eight weeks old when his father Oliver Mailey is alleged to have inflicted fatal injuries at their home in Burnley on November 28, 2021.
A man killed his newborn baby by shaking him with force similar to a car accident or a fall from a multi-storey building, a has court heard.
Abel Jax Mailey was less than eight weeks old when his father Oliver Mailey was alleged to have inflicted fatal injuries at their home in Burnley on November 28, 2021.
Mailey first claimed he found the child limp and lifeless in his cot, but the 26-year-old admitted he had shaken Abel and pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
However, he's accused of intending to cause the baby serious harm, and a murder trial opened at Preston Crown Court on Thursday. After the jury of five men and seven women were sworn in, prosecutor Timothy Cray KC outlined the case against Mailey.
Addressing the jury, he said Mailey was in sole charge of the baby at their Burnley home. Within less than an hour of the baby’s mum, Mollie Gorton, leaving for work at 11.15am, the baby had suffered serious injuries and needed to be taken to hospital by ambulance.
Mailey first claimed that the baby went limp while he was feeding his bottle. On a 999 call, he said he had no idea what happened but that "he's gone right limp, he's gone weird".
Mr Cray said: “The defendant’s initial story was that he had found Abel in his crib and that Abel appeared limp and lifeless. The key thing he was saying then was that he didn’t know what had happened to Abel.
"I’m afraid what you will hear is that those statements were lies. After speaking to others, he called an ambulance at 12.06pm. Abel died on the evening of Tuesday, November 30 after life support was withdrawn.”
Examination of Abel discovered a catalogue of traumatic injuries, including catastrophic brain damage and severe bleeding and tearing injuries in his eyes. The damage to the baby’s brain meant he would have stopped breathing and been deprived of oxygen to his brain, Mr Cray said. He explained doctors agreed the injuries were consistent with “forceful and deliberate shaking” on the Sunday morning. These, the prosecutor said, led to Abel’s death.
Mr Cray said: “After death, evidence was also found of old, healing incidents to Abel’s brain which suggested there was also previous shaking. The earlier brain injuries go hand in hand with the examination of Abel’s ribs because the experts there found evidence of healing fractures from between four and 10 days of his death.”
Mr Cray explained that these injuries are not caused accidentally and said could only otherwise happen in a situation such as a “car accident or fall from a multi-storey building”.
He continued: “In the run up to this trial, the defendant has pleaded guilty to manslaughter. This defendant does not dispute that he shook Abel on the Sunday morning, that the shaking caused Abel’s death and that his acts were unlawful.
“The big factual issue that leaves for you is what he intended when he picked up Abel and shook him. In particular, did he intend to cause Abel really serious bodily harm? The defendant says that is not what he intended, and so he denies murder.”
Outlining the lead up to the tragic death, Mr Cray explained that Mailey repeatedly challenged Ms Gorton on whether the baby was actually his, because he knew he had a low sperm count. Tensions between the couple were bad enough for him to move out for a few months before the baby was born. They eventually reconciled, but problems remained.
Mr Cray told the jury: “Another issue was that there was little money in the house, but both parents were regular users of cannabis. Mollie says she was trying to cut down her use but that the defendant was unable to do the same. The phone records show that he was arranging to buy cannabis on the Sunday morning that Abel was killed.”
Although Miss Gorton said she felt their relationship went downhill after the birth of Abel, she did not think there was an issue with his childcare ability and believed that he loved the baby and was willing to do his share of the parenting. The prosecution explained that there were no signs of neglect in the house, which was clean and with family photographs on display, and it appeared that Abel was a very loved, well-cared-for child.
There was no way of expecting something so horrific could happen when Miss Gorton left for work, Mr Cray explained. But “given what was found out after Abel’s death, Mollie was mistaken about the defendant’s true feelings for Abel”. During a routine visit, a health visitor identified no cause for concern but specifically explained the dangers of shaking a baby.
During the baby's short life, concerns were noted by Ms Gorton's godmother, Charlene Hay, who called at the house on Piccadilly Road when Mailey was looking after the baby alone. She noticed Abel screaming with particular distress and was concerned at his attitude, and what appeared to be a fresh bruise developing on his ear. She thought it was such an issue that she told Ms Gorton and made a note on her calendar.
Mailey was questioned by Ms Gorton over whether he had shaken the baby after he was rushed to hospital, but he repeatedly denied it. Once medical examinations were completed, he was eventually arrested in July 2022 but gave no comment in interview.
Mailey sat in the dock wearing a black Nike T-shirt and blue jeans and with a beard and top knot. He denies murder.
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