Man jailed for shaking baby daughter to death
A man has been jailed for eight years after admitting shaking his baby daughter to death.
James Ring, 21, was caring for nine-week-old Aria at home in the Crabble area of Dover when she went into cardiac arrest on January 7 last year.
He told emergency services that she had become unresponsive during a bottle feed.
Aria was taken to a hospital in Kent before being transferred to a specialist unit in London where doctors discovered she had a severe brain injury, sparking a police investigation.
Ring was arrested on January 8 but denied any wrongdoing in interview, Kent Police said, but did admit to striking his daughter a fortnight before.
The little girl died in hospital the following day after her life support was withdrawn.
It emerged that she had suffered an older brain injury as well as a more recent one, the force said.
Following a post-mortem, an investigation into other available medical evidence and extensive inquiries, Ring was charged with Aria's murder on November 29 2017.
Several medical experts agreed that aside from the first injury, which resulted in significant bleeding, the trauma that caused her death was so severe it must have taken place on the day she fell in to cardiac arrest.
Ring was caring for her alone at the time, Kent Police said.
Doctors found that her injuries were consistent with being severely shaken and that the symptoms she suffered would have appeared immediately afterwards.
Ring pleaded guilty to manslaughter on May 31, the first day of his trial for murder, at Maidstone Crown Court.
He admitted shaking his daughter briefly but forcefully during the time he was alone with her that day, police said.
The defendant was jailed for eight years on Monday.
Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Tristan Kluibenschadl said: "This has been an incredibly sad and emotional case and the death of any child is extremely tragic.
"My sympathies are with the baby's family who have suffered a drawn-out case right up to the start of the trial, due to Ring's inability to simply tell the truth about what happened that day.
"Children are among the most vulnerable in our society and look to the care and love of their families for survival.
"With the case now over I hope the family can take the time to grieve and move forward from this very sad ordeal."
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