BABY DEATH: Paul Rich jailed for seven years and six months

The 53-year-old, of Sandy Lane, Shrivenham, pleaded guilty at Bristol Crown Court yesterday to manslaughter. It followed the death of three-month-old Patrick in March 2017.

READ MORE: 'Paul Rich deserves to see out his remaining days behind bars,' says mum

READ MORE: Police chief says all her team were affected by baby death case

Appearing before the court this afternoon, Rich was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years imprisonment. He was told he will serve half of that period in jail, with the remainder of the sentence to be served on licence. 

Sentencing remarks

Sentencing him, Mr Justice Soole told Rich: "You were tired after a full day at work and then being up through the night; and you were frustrated that Patrick would not settle.

"At 3.15am you called the emergency services stating: 'It's a baby...I've just got him out of his cot and he doesn't look right to me...His eyes are sort of semi-open but he seems all floppy to me.' The lead paramedic arrived at 3.24am and found Patrick lying on the sofa, unresponsive, pale and blue. It was obvious to the paramedic that Patrick was in cardiac arrest.

"The cause of this, as you finally acknowledged last week, was that you had suddenly assaulted him by compression of the rib cage, gripping and squeezing him from side to side; shaking him; and then throwing him into his Moses basket. You have not given any further detail about the immediate events but, as the Prosecution accepts, this assault was a sudden outburst of frustration with a crying child and must have been over within a very short period of time, perhaps a matter of seconds. However, its consequence was fatal."

Mum's anger

Reacting to the sentence, Patrick's mum, Kirsty Bradley, said: "We are absolutely livid that Patrick’s killer is getting such an unduly lenient sentence. He has shown absolutely no remorse.

"We will be looking into what we can do to appeal, as we both feel that Patrick’s life seemingly means nothing to those who could have imposed a sentence where Rich spent the rest of his days behind bars."

Police reaction

Det Ch Insp Ruth Mather said:  “This is a truly heart-breaking case which resulted in the death of a little baby boy. Our thoughts remain with Patrick’s family who have suffered an irreparable loss and I hope that today brings them some sense of closure. 

“Rich was left in a position of trust in charge of Patrick’s welfare on the evening of assault but, instead of making sure he was safe and well, he caused a fatal brain injury which tragically led to his death. 

“I would like to take this opportunity to praise the valiant efforts of the medical staff at both the Great Western Hospital and the Bristol Children's Hospital who provided Patrick with round-the-clock care.

“The death of a baby is truly one of the most difficult crimes to investigate so I would also like to thank the dedication and professionalism shown by my colleagues. It is due to their hard work and diligence that we have been able to secure this conviction today.” 

More follows.