Cornish grandmother of drowned baby admits cruelty

CORNISH GRANDMOTHER OF DROWNED BABY ADMITS CRUELTY

The grandmother of a baby who drowned in a bath while she was out of the room has admitted child cruelty.

Eleven-month-old Chanelle Grenfell died on 26 December 2017 after Shirley Grenfell left her bathroom for two to three minutes, Truro Crown Court heard.

Mrs Justice Juliet May said the death was the result of "tragic inattention" by the 53-year-old "loving grandmother" from Illogan, Cornwall.

Grenfell was given a one-year jail sentence, suspended for 18 months.

The court was told Chanelle, who was brought to Grenfell's home for the night by her parents, died after Grenfell left the room to fetch a towel.

After the alarm was raised, the baby was taken to hospital in Truro, then to Bristol, but died a day later.

The judge accepted Grenfell had only been out of the bathroom for two to three minutes and came back to find Chanelle on her back under water.

Grenfell admitted the lesser charge after a jury failed to find her guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence at an earlier trial.

The trial highlighted that the bath at Grenfell's house had 14cm of water in it, exceeding NHS advice.

The defendant's counsel said the case was very different from child cruelty cases and emphasized Grenfell's ongoing distress.

A victim impact statement from Chantelle's mother, Kirsty Mankee, was read, expressing love for her daughter and urging people to be cautious with children in baths.