Baby biter jailed for six months

Colin Adwent

BABY biter James Warner is serving a six-month sentence today after admitting sinking his teeth into a child he was looking after.

Ipswich Crown Court heard the 20-year-old had assaulted the infant after becoming frustrated with the youngster's screaming.

Sentencing Warner, of Burrell Road, Ipswich, Judge Peter Fenn told him: “Society rightly feels outraged about this sort of behaviour towards very young children.

“I accept you had very little experience of looking after children of this age and I accept it was perhaps a situation you would rather you had not been placed in.

“But, nonetheless, willingly or not, you took on the responsibility of care for this young child and you dramatically failed in your responsibility to that child.

“It is not excessive to say that you became frustrated by the constant screaming.”

However, before sentencing Warner to 26 weeks detention, Judge Fenn did add that the infant had not suffered any long term injuries as a result of the assault.

The court heard that while the child was in Warner's care the baby had fallen off a sofa and sustained injuries to the face and leg.

These caused the child pain, and it began shrieking.

Judge Fenn accepted the basis of Warner's guilty plea to assaulting the child, which was that he bit the infant in desperation because the youngster would not stop screaming.

Earlier in the hearing the court heard Warner had originally denied biting the child.

However, he had once shown someone a self-induced bite mark to show the impression made by his teeth after he had told them he had an extra tooth.

That person saw a similar marking on the child, who was taken to hospital following the assault.

Warner then said he had not meant to bite the infant with such force.

Juliet Donovan, mitigating, said of her client: “He's absolutely and utterly ashamed of his behaviour.”

She added Warner had also been bullied in prison while on remand awaiting sentencing.