Anand Beharrylal KC and Tomas McGarvey secure acquittal for Grievous Bodily Harm With Intent against 8 week old baby

Anand Beharrylal KC leading Tomas McGarvey instructed by City Law Chambers successfully represented a defendant mother who was accused of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to her eight week old baby.

The prosecution case involved an allegation against the parents, with the parents in turn raising cut-throat defences. The evidence involved complex expert evidence in relation to medical records, paediatrics, infant injury paediatric radiology, CCTV, phone calls/messages evidence, contested hearsay in various forms from a four year old and bad character evidence.

The defence, through robust cross examination of both prosecution witnesses and the co-defendant, adduced evidence to support the proposition that only one parent was responsible for the injuries and that in all likelihood these had only occurred on a single occasion when the other parent was absent. Further, that there was extremely limited awareness of any risk of that one parent would cause any injury to the baby.

Following a lengthy period of deliberation, the jury returned verdicts of guilty against the co-defendant for causing grievous bodily harm with intent to the baby and acquitted the defendant mother of that offence, instead preferring the alternative offence in relation to failing to protect the baby from the risk posed by the co-defendant. The defendant mother was sentenced to a suspended sentence.   

https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2024-03-23/abuser-who-injured-baby-girl-tried-to-pin-blame-on-four-year-old-child

https://www.bedfordtoday.co.uk/news/crime/bedford-father-jailed-after-his-8-week-old-baby-suffers-multiple-broken-bones-4570098