A man who murdered his two-week-old son in a special care baby unit in Somerset while nurses worked less than 5 metres away will serve at least 18 years in prison.
Experts said the injuries that Daniel Gunter, 27, caused to Brendon Staddon were like those they would expect to see in someone who had fallen from a high building, but the attack was so swift and silent that staff did not realise what was going on.
Mr Justice Swift, who jailed Gunter for life, said Brendon had suffered catastrophic and appalling injuries at the hands of someone who should have been taking care of him. He said the harm he inflicted on Brendon was “beyond comprehension”.
The judge told Bristol crown court he believed Gunter had held his son by the legs and swung him forcefully, causing his head to strike a blunt object or surface multiple times.
He added that there must have been some planning to have carried out such an attack without alerting nurses nearby. The judge said Gunter would serve at least 18 years and 239 days in prison before being considered for release on licence.
Gunter’s former partner Sophie Staddon, 21, was found not guilty of causing or allowing the death of her son, who was born prematurely. She was also in the unit at the hospital in Yeovil at the time.
In a victim impact statement, Simon Gunter, Brendon’s grandfather, said he was a precious baby. “He was so tiny but so beautiful he was just perfect. He was a little fighter and proved his strength by making great progress.”
Simon Gunter said Brendon was his first grandchild and the family had been happy at his birth. “We had excited plans for the future.” But they had not seen his first attempt to crawl or his first smile, he said. Of his son’s arrest, Simon Gunter said: “Our worlds fell apart. It didn’t make sense.”
Andrew Langdon KC, defending, said Gunter had learning disabilities, lack of emotional understanding, a very disrupted childhood and a low IQ. He was often excluded from school because he ran away.
He said Gunter had been threatened repeatedly while in prison after being convicted of murder and had been too fearful to leave his cell to meet probation officers for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.
After the attack, which took place in the early hours of 5 March last year, both parents left the unit for a cigarette as nurses and medics tried to save Brendon.
A child safeguarding practice review is examining whether further measures should have been put in place to protect Brendon from his father, who had a history of violence and was controlling of Staddon.
It will also look at the actions of social services, who knew the couple’s issues and were considering whether to remove Brendon from them out of concern for his wellbeing.
Gunter has not given any explanation for the killing but police believe a motive could have been the fear that Staddon might move to a mother and baby unit where no accommodation would be available to him. He had also quizzed Staddon over whether Brendon really was his son.
