Men guilty of horrific death of 'at risk' baby

Two men were found guilty in London yesterday of causing or allowing the death of a toddler who suffered a broken back and over 40 horrific injuries during a campaign of domestic violence despite being on a council's "at risk" register.

Although he was regularly seen by doctors and social workers in the London borough of Haringey, 17-month-old Baby P was used as a "punch bag" and by the time of his death in August last year resembled a car crash victim, the Old Bailey heard.

Five years ago, Haringey council was severely criticised following the death of eight-year-old Victoria Climbie, who was murdered by her guardians in 2000 despite in theory being under the council's protection.

Her killing, one of Britain's worst-ever child abuse cases, resulted in a public inquiry and a radical change in child protection policies.

Baby P was covered in sores and bruises, had missing finger tips and nails, had bite marks on his head and would have been paralysed from the waist down due to his broken spine.

Yesterday, the jury cleared his mother's 32-year-old boyfriend and lodger Jason Owen, 36, of murder. However, both were found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child.

The 27-year-old mother, who along with her boyfriend cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted the same charge before the start of the trial. The three all face up to 14 years in prison.

The baby had been taken to hospital three times in the months before his death after being repeatedly beaten and abused at his house in Tottenham, north London.

The child was also regularly seen by social and health workers and just two days before he died, by a paediatrician, who failed to notice he had a broken back, eight fractured ribs and multiple sores.

Prosecutor Sally O'Neill said the injuries should have been obvious. "This could not fail to have been observed by a competent doctor who had examined him properly," she said.