12-Week-Old Baby Dies From 'Devastating Injuries'; Mother's Partner Found Guilty Of Murder

A man in England, who was accused of killing his partner’s infant son, has been found guilty.

The court heard that 31-year-old Kane Mitchell and 29-year-old Lucci Smith had been in a relationship for eight months, and were living together with baby Teddie and the woman's other children from a previous relationship, Cambridgeshire Live reported.

On Nov. 1, 2019, Smith went out for a run, leaving 12-week-old Teddie in the care of the accused. When she returned home, she noticed her son seemed lethargic. Soon the infant’s condition deteriorated following which she called the medics, who arrived and found the boy unresponsive and in cardiac arrest.

The infant was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Tests revealed he had a fractured skull and significant bleed in the brain. After the doctors showed concern regarding how the infant had received the injuries, Mitchell and Smith were taken into custody at the hospital.

Teddie was transferred to another hospital where he was kept on life support, and 11 days later, a decision was made to withdraw the life support. The boy died shortly after that. An autopsy revealed a fractured skull and lack of oxygen to the brain caused his death.

A trial heard the baby suffered weeks of neglect and had received "devastating injuries."

"He received fatal injuries as a result of being gripped hard, shaken vigorously and having his head struck against a hard surface. In the course of that, he suffered rib fractures, fractures to his collar bone and a fractured skull. The forces involved gave him serious brain injuries from which he died," prosecutor said during the trial, Cambridgeshire Live reported.

On Thursday, Mitchell was found guilty of murder and cruelty and remained in custody. Meanwhile, Smith was found guilty of cruelty to a child, as she "wilfully neglected him in a manner likely to cause him unnecessary suffering or injury to health." She was released on bail. Both of them are set to be sentenced on Feb. 5, BBC reported.

"This is a tragic and terrible case in which a baby lost his life at the hands of a person who should have been there to protect him. Our investigation found that Teddie had suffered multiple injuries during his short life which neither Mitchell or Smith could account for," Detective Inspector Lucy Thomson said, Cambridgeshire Live reported. "The verdict won’t bring Teddie back, but it does bring some justice for what he endured."