A violent father who shook his 4 -month -old baby on two occasions was sentenced to a four -year prison sentence. The child, on the other hand, suffers from severe neurological attacks which will handicap him all his life.
The sentence was pronounced at the Quebec courthouse on June 19 by judge Chantale Pelletier. The offender, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of his little victim, had pleaded guilty to a serious assault in March 2024.
According to the summary of the facts presented to the court at that time, the man admitted to having shook his 4 month old baby at two separate events that occurred in the fall of 2022.
Although the child was taken from convulsions and vomiting after the two events, he never saw fit to notify his spouse or the doctors. It was ultimately the doctors of the Chul who made a report at the DPJ by examining the injuries of the child.
The baby was suffering from brain hemorrhages and encephalopathy at this moment, in addition to retinal hemorrhages and a fractured coast.
Archives photo, QMI agency
Serious sequelae
The medical reports submitted in evidence and the testimony of the mother are unequivocal: the little one will keep neurological sequelae all his life.
In fact, his condition was so serious at the time of his hospitalization that the child’s mother signed a non-resuscitation document, which was the case of a cardiopulmonary arrest.
The expertise of a pediatric neurosurgeon reports “one or more episodes of mistreatment that led to a non -accidental craniocerebral trauma”, in addition to emphasizing that at 20 months old, the child was still not standing alone and had delays in language and development.
“The neurological involvement is severe,” writes the Dr Louis Crevier in his evaluation.
Now aged 3, the child still does not speak and weekly follow -ups are still necessary, according to judgment.
Given these consequences, the prosecutor in the file, Me Andréanne Sirois demanded the taxation of a sentence of five to six years of penitentiary.
Camouflage attempts
Judge Pelletier pointed out in his decision that the gestures occurred while the DPJ was already in the father’s file and that a social worker accompanied him.
“He was neither isolated nor helpless. He could have asked for help, ”deplores the magistrate.
However, the unworthy father chose to shake off his toddler, leading to dramatic consequences “which handicap him for the rest of his life”.
Among the aggravating circumstances identified by the judge, the father’s attempts to camouflage his crime without ever seeking to offer help to his child also weighed in the balance.
Since the father had already served 17 months preventively in this file, therefore 25 and a half months in the increased credit, his lawyers estimated that a home sentence accompanied by community works would be sufficient.
The prosecutor in the file, Me Andréanne Sirois, demanded the imposition of a global sentence of five to six years of penitentiary.
The court concluded that an additional 22 -month incarceration would be just in order to properly reflect the seriousness of the crimes and above all, the long -term consequences on the life of the toddler.
The offender will also be under a two -year probation after the expiration of his sentence.
