A man who broke a 28-day-old baby’s skull, leaving the infant brain damaged and disabled, was once again arrested for a brutal assault on a mother holding her child. Despite his charges coming with a prison sentence, the judge gave an unbelievable reason for letting the man walk free.
When UK native John James Whinnett was just 20 years old, he welcomed a baby boy into the world. Unfortunately, the child wasn’t even in the world for a month before he learned the true nature of his abusive father.
Whinnett brutally assaulted the 28-day-old baby boy, leaving the infant with two skull fractures and two broken ribs. The baby was rushed to the emergency room in Liverpool, where he suffered cardiac arrest and was placed on life support, according to the Liverpool Echo.
The baby’s grandmother said, “He was on a life support machine from the end of May to July last year and then he went to neurology department to be treated for his brain injuries, He had actually died and had to be revived by the ambulance service. When he was on the life support machine we didn’t know what to expect, the doctors told us he could be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.”
The baby boy was released from the hospital a month after coming off of life support. Miraculously, he managed to defy doctors’ expectations, learning to crawl on his own and surpassing developmental milestones his family never thought they would see. However, medical experts say he will still have learning difficulties for the rest of his life due to the brain damage he suffered at the hands of his father.
The grandmother added, “At first we thought he had dropped him, that’s what he told us, but then the doctors said he had multiple injuries. This has torn our family apart, we are struggling to come to terms with what happened and my daughter is finding it very hard to cope.”
Despite his cruelty, Whinnet was sentenced to just three years in prison by Liverpool Crown Court after pleading guilty to unlawfully wounding the baby but denying three charges of grievous bodily harm against a child. Understandably, the family of the infant was devastated by the paltry sentence.
“This was a normal baby and now, because of this, he’ll have disabilities for the rest of his life. To give a sentence of three years means he could be out in a year and a half and he could do this again. It seems so unjust. He should have got a lot longer. What he did was evil.”
With the birth of his second child with a different partner, Whinnett was given a second chance to be the loving father his baby needs. Disturbingly, the opportunity only showed that the now-27-year-old man is nothing more than a monster.
Whinnett was once again arrested and charged with assault causing actual bodily harm after he headbutted Paige Scarratt, the mother of his child, while she was holding their 4-month-old baby girl, causing the pair to fall to the floor. Though the charge carried a maximum penalty of five years in prison, Whinnett is a free man thanks to a disturbing flaw in the justice system.
Judge Neil Flewitt blasted the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for accepting a deal to allow Whinnett to plead guilty to common assault, a lesser charge that carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail. The judge called the process “wholly inappropriate” when told that Whinnett had already spent three months on remand in custody, the Daily Mail reports.
Addressing the defendant, Judge Flewitt said, “I made it clear to prosecution counsel before that process took place that I wholly disagree with that course of action and I did not feel the power of a maximum sentence of six months’ imprisonment was sufficient to deal with this incident.”
Claiming that his hands were tied, Judge Flewitt lamented that he would have to allow Whinnett to walk away as a free man. He fumed that, thanks to the prosecution’s mishandling of the case, “He is going to walk out of prison in the next day or two.”
The judge said, “In my view that is a wholly inadequate punishment for the incident that I have described. That has been brought about by the decision of the prosecution to accept what I regard as a wholly inappropriate plea.”
Paige Scarratt has explained that she is “petrified” that John James Whinnett will retaliate against her and her family for reporting his abuse. She fears for her daughter’s life now that he is a free man once again.
Whinnett has proven that he is no less violent than the day he nearly killed his first child. Outrageously, all the court system has taught him is that he can continue this abusive behavior and get a slap on the wrist.
Source: Tap Worthy Happenings
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