MOTHERWELL BABY LEFT BRAIN-DAMAGED AFTER SHAKING ATTACK
A 22-year-old man has pleaded guilty to shaking a seven-month baby so violently that he suffered brain damage.Derek Barr was left alone with the boy for just nine minutes at a house in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire.
The High Court in Glasgow heard the baby's mother returned to find him "floppy and unresponsive" in Barr's arms.
Barr initially convinced the mother to lie to police that the youngster was hurt after choking on his bottle.
But the woman later told officers: "I know it was him (Barr) that done it." Barr, from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, admitted assaulting the boy to the danger of his life on 30 January 2018.
He will be sentenced next month.
The court was told a neighbour had heard a baby crying and a man shouting, as if in a "pure rage", hours before the attack.
The mother went out briefly later that evening.
Prosecutor Kath Harper then said: "She confirmed her son was fit and well when she left.
But, he was floppy and unresponsive in the arms of Barr on her return nine minutes later." Barr called an ambulance and paramedics rushed the ill child to hospital.
He was found to have a brain injury, bleeding in his eyes, and bruising on his stomach and head.
Ms Harper: "It was thought at one point the child would not survive.
He did and has recovered to some degree." The baby spent five weeks in hospital before being allowed home.
The prosecutor added: "It is expected he will continue to make progress, but it is difficult to predict long-term outcomes." The boy has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, with his vision and speech badly affected.
He will need ongoing therapy.
