Father who murdered premature baby in neonatal unit jailed for life

A father who murdered his premature baby in a special care baby unit has been jailed for a minimum of 20 years.

Daniel Gunter, 27, inflicted catastrophic injuries to the head, neck, legs and jaw of 14-day-old Brendon Staddon at Yeovil District Hospital in Somerset on March 5 last year.

Hospital staff discovered Brendon fatally injured in his cot after his mother, Sophie Staddon, 21, told nurses he was cold at about 4am.

The baby, who was born at 33 weeks’ gestation and weighed 1.83kg at birth, was carried to the resuscitation area but did not respond to treatment and was pronounced dead at 4.59am.

His parents, who left the unit to smoke outside the hospital while doctors and nurses worked on their son, were arrested a short time later.

Gunter was convicted of murder following a three-week trial at Bristol Crown Court, while Staddon was acquitted of causing or allowing Brendon’s death.

Mr Justice Swift told Gunter: “Brendon was your son. He was born on February 20 2024 at Yeovil District Hospital. He was born a little prematurely, at 33 weeks, but was in all other respects a healthy child.

“After his birth, he was cared for in the special care baby unit at Yeovil District Hospital. He was an entirely healthy child.

“Brendon’s death was the result of catastrophic injuries, all of which you inflicted in the early hours of March 3.

“The injuries were appalling. At your trial, several medical experts gave evidence describing these injuries and explaining how they were likely to have been caused.

“Brendon sustained multiple injuries to the front of his head and face, chin, nose, eyes and cheek, to his skull, to his neck, his torso, his left hand, legs and feet – fractures caused by twisting and pulling – and significant internal bleeding.

“Put in simple terms, very severe force was brought to bear on Brendon. His skull was shattered and his neck was broken.

“One way in which these injuries could have occurred was if Brendon had been held by his legs and swung forcefully, causing his head and neck to move excessively and his head to impact multiple times on a blunt object or surface.”

The judge described Brendon as a “highly vulnerable victim” murdered by his own father, who was meant to be responsible for his care and safety, while in a hospital setting.

He found the murder was one of “excessive violence”, given the extent of Brendon’s injuries and the way they had been inflicted upon him.

Mr Justice Swift also ruled that the killing was pre-meditated, with Gunter inflicting the fatal injuries without alerting nurses who were at a nearby station at the time.

Referring to the victim impact statements from Brendon’s grandparents, the judge said: “Each has been and will continue to be deeply affected by his death, and neither can understand the reason for these shocking events.

“No sentence that I could pass today could possibly ease their grief at Brendon’s death.

“The sentence I pass is in no way intended as a measure of the value of his life, and I hope his family and others affected by his death will not regard it as such.”

Prosecuting, Charles Row KC, told the court Gunter was controlling towards Staddon and questioned whether he was Brendon’s biological father.

Medical experts described Brendon’s injuries as “akin to a fall from a multi-storey building”, Mr Row added.

“There was a intention to kill demonstrated by the sheer brutality of the attack,” he said.

In a victim personal statement, Gunter’s father Simon Gunter paid tribute to Brendon and described the devastating impact of his death.

“He was so tiny but so beautiful, he was just perfect,” his statement said.

“Brendon was my first grandson from my first born child. As a family, we were so happy and excited.

“My family and I were fortunate to have met Brendon in hospital during his short life. We held him and had cuddles with him.”

Mr Gunter described how “time stopped still” when he was informed Brendon had died and how he had been unable to speak to his son since.

Members of Brendon’s family visited him in the mortuary and arranged a funeral to give him “a beautiful send off”, he said.

“We will never see his first crawl, his first steps or his first word,” Mr Gunter’s statement continued.

“He didn’t even have a chance to give us his first smile.”

Andrew Langdon, representing Gunter, said his client had a very low IQ and was “immature for his age”.

Mr Langdon described Gunter’s childhood as “disruptive” and said he had been excluded from school after running away.

The barrister highlighted to the court that he had no previous convictions for violence, with a caution for throwing a bottle of water over an ex-partner.

During his trial, jurors heard how Gunter repeatedly ignored the advice of nurses – taking Brendon out of his incubator without asking, overstimulating him and removing his nasal gastric tube.

Family members witnessed Gunter shouting and becoming angry at Brendon, as well as handling him roughly, in hospital.

Before Brendon’s birth, Staddon and Gunter were told authorities planned to remove the baby from their care when he was born.

Speaking outside court, Detective Chief Inspector Nadine Partridge of Avon and Somerset Police, described Gunter’s actions as “utterly horrific”.

“There wasn’t a part of Brendon’s body that was left unharmed in this brutal assault,” she said.

“Just the thought that someone could be capable of doing what Daniel did to a tiny baby is incomprehensible.”

She added that the case was “one of the most harrowing investigations our team has ever faced”.

A spokesperson for Somerset NHS Foundation Trust said: “This was an incredibly distressing criminal case about the murder of a vulnerable two-week-old baby while he was being cared for in Yeovil District Hospital.

“Our thoughts continue to be with his wider family. We are part of the Child Safeguarding Practice Review, along with other agencies, that will thoroughly examine the circumstances around baby Brendon’s death.

“It is well under way, and we await publication later this year.”