A 27-year-old man has been convicted of murdering his two-week-old son in a special care baby unit at a Somerset hospital, following what prosecutors described as an attack of “sheer brutality”.
Daniel Gunter, of no fixed address, was found guilty at Bristol Crown Court of killing baby Brendon Staddon on 5 March 2024 at Yeovil District Hospital. The infant suffered catastrophic injuries including a crushed skull, broken neck, jaw, legs, ankles and wrists whilst under hospital care.
The baby’s mother, Sophie Staddon, 23, was cleared of causing or allowing the death of a child. She had previously been found not guilty of murder, whilst Gunter was cleared of the alternative charge on the direction of trial judge Mr Justice Swift.
Fatal Injuries Discovered
The court heard that hospital staff discovered Brendon’s devastating injuries after Staddon alerted nurses at approximately 4am that her son felt cold. When staff rushed to check the infant, they found him lying in his cot with his baby grow open and immediately recognised he had suffered catastrophic trauma.
“In plain language, his head had been crushed so as to shatter his skull. He was badly bruised from head to toe, with deep scratches in his neck,” prosecutor Charles Row KC told the jury. “He was later found to have, amongst other injuries, a broken neck, a broken jaw, broken legs, broken ankles and broken wrists.”
Whilst medical staff desperately attempted to save the baby’s life, carrying his “limp, lifeless body” to the resuscitation area, both parents left the unit to smoke cigarettes outside. Brendon was pronounced dead at 4.59am despite intensive efforts to revive him.
Parents Arrested While Smoking
Police arrested Gunter and Staddon outside the hospital as they were smoking, the court was told. Neither parent had returned to check on their critically injured son after leaving the unit.
A post-mortem examination determined that Brendon died from “blunt force impact(s) head injury” with multiple non-accidental injuries to the head. Medical experts later compared the extent of damage to the impact of a heavy object falling on the infant’s head.
Detective Chief Inspector Nadine Partridge of Avon and Somerset Police said: “The extent of the injuries were like nothing I’ve seen before.”
Warning Signs Before Death
The trial revealed that social services and Gunter’s family had raised concerns about the couple’s “lack of emotional warmth” towards their child before his death. In January 2024, a social worker had visited the couple to inform them that authorities planned to remove the baby from their care when he was born.
“Brendon was deemed to be at risk of neglect, not physical harm,” Detective Chief Inspector Partridge explained. “The previous behaviours of Daniel and Sophie wouldn’t put them in a category where they would think there was a serious risk of significant harm to that child outside of neglect.”
Brendon was born prematurely on 20 February 2024 at 33 weeks’ gestation, weighing 1.83kg. Medical staff had encouraged Staddon to remain in hospital following the birth, but she left to return to temporary accommodation she shared with Gunter.
Troubling Behaviour on Ward
During hospital visits, staff became increasingly concerned about Gunter’s behaviour. Nurses reported seeing him remove Brendon from his incubator without permission and repeatedly ignore clinical advice. He was observed overstimulating the child to the point of causing distress and removing the baby’s nasal gastric tube.
On the night of Brendon’s death, Gunter requested milk to feed the infant around 3am. When a nurse checked on the couple half an hour later, she found Gunter’s response “odd”, describing him as seeming excited with an “unusually animated” manner and “exaggerated nodding”.
“The nurse thought later that it was as if he didn’t want her to go over,” Mr Row told the court.
Mother’s Account
When Staddon approached the nursing station to report her son was cold, she called out to Gunter: “I don’t know if he is alive or not.” Gunter responded: “He’s fine, babe, he’s fine.”
As nurses began resuscitation attempts, Staddon became “upset and panicking”, particularly upon hearing that Brendon was not breathing. She replied to Gunter: “He’s not fine.” Despite becoming “hysterical” and saying she wanted to see her baby, Gunter told her to “let them do what they need to do” before they went outside.
In police interviews, Staddon told officers she and Gunter had been arguing, with him demanding a DNA test to prove paternity. She described Gunter as angry and controlling but insisted she had not witnessed him harm the baby.
“She did not go back inside the hospital because she wanted to wait and see if hospital staff came out to tell her what had happened,” Mr Row said. “She thought Brendon was dying, but didn’t know why.”
Verdicts and Sentencing
The defendants showed no emotion as the verdicts were delivered following a three-week trial. Gunter was remanded in custody and will be sentenced at a later date.
Mr Justice Swift told Gunter: “Daniel Gunter you have been found guilty of murder. You will be remanded into custody pending the sentencing hearing.” Addressing Staddon, he said: “Sophie Staddon you have been acquitted by the jury. Your bail will no longer be necessary and you are free to go.”
The jury had heard evidence of an “on-off relationship” between the couple, with allegations that Gunter had been violent towards Staddon on occasion.
Hospital Security Measures
The case raises questions about security measures in special care baby units across the UK. Many NHS trusts employ infant security systems including electronic tagging to prevent unauthorised removal of babies and monitor their location within hospital premises.
The NHS has comprehensive safeguarding frameworks in place, with named professionals responsible for child protection issues in each trust. Staff receive mandatory training on identifying and reporting safeguarding concerns, with systems for flagging at-risk children.
However, the unprecedented nature of this case – with fatal injuries inflicted within a hospital setting – highlights the challenges of protecting vulnerable infants even in supervised medical environments.
Support for Families
Organisations including Bliss, which supports families of premature and sick babies, emphasise the importance of psychological support for parents during what can be an extremely stressful time. Most neonatal units provide counselling services and encourage parental involvement in care whilst maintaining necessary safeguards.
The tragedy underscores the critical role of healthcare professionals in identifying safeguarding concerns and the importance of multi-agency cooperation between hospitals, social services and police in protecting vulnerable children.
Brendon Staddon’s death represents a catastrophic failure in the system designed to protect society’s most vulnerable members, occurring in what should have been one of the safest possible environments – a hospital special care unit under constant medical supervision.
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