https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8929093/Father-37-son-died-brain-injury-inflicted-baby-jailed-three-years.htmlFather, 37, is jailed for three years after son he violently shook as a baby dies of brain injury aged 15
John Doak, 37, from Lincolnshire, pleaded guilty to killing his 15-year-old son
Jack Mitchell died in 2016 after suffering injuries as a baby in Basildon, Essex
He was taken into foster care, but his quality of life was said to be 'very poor'
Essex Police say it is a 'truly tragic case,' as young man's future was 'taken away'
By Luke May For Mailonline
Published: 15:37, 9 November 2020 | Updated: 15:42, 9 November 2020
A father has been jailed for three years after the son he violently shook as a baby died from complications of a brain injury at the age of 15. John Doak, 37, was jailed at Chelmsford Crown Court today after admitting to the manslaughter of his son Jack Mitchell, who died in 2016. Wheelchair-user Jack suffered severe traumatic brain injuries at the hands of his father when he was just four-months-old, while living in Laindon, near Basildon in Essex, in 2001. He was taken into foster care after the assault, but grew up with cerebral palsy, epilepsy, curvature of the spine and blindness. He required 24 hour care, was unable to talk, care or feed himself and the court heard Jack's quality of life was 'very poor indeed, if not non-existent'.
Following his death, a post-mortem examination found he had died from a pulmonary infection and pneumonia brought on by the injuries he had suffered. Doak's sentence was reduced from eight years as the lorry driver had already served four years for GBH for the attack and admitted the killing on Friday. Prosecutor Philip Evans told the court Doak, of Spalding, Lincolnshire, shook the infant when he was caring for Jack alone in Laindon, Essex, and the incident 'would be outside the window of what would be described as rough handling'.
The lad was rushed to hospital on May 22, 2001, after being found unresponsive and taken to Great Ormond Street Hospital where his brain injuries were uncovered. The dad was found guilty of one count of GBH and was sentenced to a four year prison term in 2002. Jack was put in foster care and Doak had no further contact with him and he died in hospital in 2016. Following an inquest Doak was re-arrested and charged with his murder, but admitted to manslaughter at the earliest opportunity. However Mr Justice Cavanagh ruled Doak never came 'clean about what happened' on that day and Jack endured 'great suffering and low quality of life' as a result of the assault. He said: 'I have seen pictures of Jack as a baby and he was a lovely little boy. Tragically he did not have sufficient time for his personality to develop before the assault led to his severe disabilities.'
In mitigation David Emanuel said Doak has been devastated by the death and it was unclear how the injuries were sustained but it was most likely 'what probably happened was the loss of control temporarily to try and stop Jack from crying'.
He said: 'He's never forgotten his son Jack, still loves him to this day and grieves for him everyday. What happened on that day has changed him, shaped him and in a way broken him'
However Mr Justice Cavanagh ruled this was not sufficient mitigation and that Doak must serve a prison sentence. He said: 'You were the only person present on 22 May 2001 apart from Jack, but you have never come clean about what happened. You have not described the assault, or what your intentions were. This was a single incident probably involving a temporary loss of control, but the fact remains that you shook a small and defenceless baby in a way that you must have known was a rough and inappropriate way to treat him, and which might cause him real harm.'
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Truss, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: 'This is a tragic case of a young man who had any chance of a future taken away by the actions of his father. Jack's injuries he sustained as a child were so severe he required extensive, round-the-clock care. John Doak was meant to care for and protect his son but instead deprived him of a future and now faces a significant amount of time in prison. My thoughts also go out to Jack's adoptive parents who had given him many wonderful years before his death. They continue to live with the sad loss of Jack.'
