Dad convicted in assault on baby

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This article was published 11/12/2009 (5754 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

He deliberately dropped his baby’s head on the floor — then breathed life back into his tiny body.

Now a Winnipeg father has been found guilty of aggravated assault for a violent attack that nearly ended in death.

Patrick Hudson Harwood-Jones told police he felt “overwhelmed and stressed” at the time of the August 2006 incident that caused his four-month-old son to briefly stop breathing. He was home alone and struggling to feed a bottle of formula to the crying child.

“With the buildup, I just let him go. I knew he was hurt. I did not throw him, I just let my arms out,” he said.

Harwood-Jones quickly realized what he’d done and picked up his son, giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. The boy resumed breathing and was rushed to hospital.

Doctors found swelling on the baby’s brain and bleeding on his retinas. There was also evidence of so-called “shaken baby syndrome.”

Harwood-Jones later admitted he’d vigorously shaken his son on at least eight prior occasions because of frustration. He said he used force that was “seven out of 10” on a scale and often left the child with a blank stare, his eyes rolled back into his head.

The baby remained in hospital for nearly two weeks, suffering various convulsions and seizures. He eventually made a full recovery and has suffered no apparent long-term damage, court was told.

Harwood-Jones initially claimeds his son had struck his head on the rails of his crib. He eventually admitted the truth after repeated questioning from police.

Harwood-Jones began his trial earlier this fall by pleading guilty to assault causing bodily harm but not guilty to the more serious offence of aggravated assault, which suggests a deliberate attempt to injure. The Crown did not accept his plea.

Queen’s Bench Justice Christopher Martin ruled Thursday the Crown had established intent. “I need only life experience and common sense to be satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that dropping a four-month-old infant from approximately adult waist height onto the floor, whether face up or face down, would put his life in danger, in peril or at risk,” Martin wrote.

Harwood-Jones will be sentenced on Jan. 7. He remains free on bail.

www.mikeoncrime.com