Man who murdered partner's two-year-old daughter is jailed
After learning his Universal Credit had been stopped and being threatened for drug debts, Michael Daymond attacked two-year-old Maya Chappell with such force that damage to her eyes was similar to that suffered from falling out of a tall building.
Thursday 21 December 2023 17:08, UK
A man who murdered his partner's toddler by shaking her to death has been jailed for life.
After learning his Universal Credit had been stopped and being threatened for drug debts, Michael Daymond attacked two-year-old Maya Chappell with such force that damage to her eyes was similar to that suffered from falling out of a tall building.
He must serve 20 years behind bars before he can apply for parole, Mr Justice Bright ruled at Teesside Crown Court.
Maya's mother, Dana Carr, 24, was convicted of allowing the death of a child and was jailed for nine years.
Both were convicted of child cruelty, with their six-year sentences for that offence to run concurrently.
Daymond, 27, had sole care of Maya on the afternoon of 28 September 2022 when he shook the toddler and caused a severe brain injury at her home in Shotton Colliery, County Durham.
The couple had only been dating for a matter of weeks when he moved in with her and Maya, and during the weeks they lived together he had frequently caused the little girl to bruise.
Mr Justice Bright said: "The injuries inflicted were not as severe before 28 September, but there is a degree of nastiness about this persistent conduct."
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'This was not an isolated flash of temper'
Addressing Daymond, who continues to deny hurting Maya, the judge added: "There was clearly a significant change in what you did to Maya on 28 September.
"Your other worries must have played a significant part, but this was not an isolated flash of temper.
"This was physical and mental suffering over a sustained period that day, on top of the weeks of occasional cruelty that had preceded it."
Mother lied 'prodigiously and without compassion'
Earlier that afternoon, Daymond had been trying to find out why his Universal Credit had been stopped and his enquiries about it continued on the phone after he had dialled 999, as paramedics performed first aid on the toddler.
Daymond had also been receiving threats about a drug debt on the day.
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Maya was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle, but never regained consciousness and died two days later.
The judge acknowledged Carr was "distraught" at her daughter's death and loved Maya but said she had lied "prodigiously and without compulsion" throughout.
Mr Justice Bright said: "You completely failed to take any steps whatsoever to protect Maya."