Father, 43, who shook his 10-week-old son to death is jailed for nearly eight years after admitting manslaughter

• Marcus Carter was sentenced after pleading guilty to manslaughter last month
•  He was cleared of murder because the act was a ‘momentary loss of control’

A father who shook his 10-week-old son to death has been jailed for nearly eight years after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

The baby’s mother accused Marcus Carter, 43, of robbing their son of his ‘childhood’ and the ‘chance to grow up’ when he forcibly shook him in August 2020.

Carter, of Walsall, initially denied being responsible for his son’s death, but ultimately accepted the force he used resulted in the child’s ‘catastrophic injuries.’

He was cleared of murder because the act was a ‘momentary loss of control,’ BBC reported.

Marcus Carter, (pictured) the father who shook his 10-week-old son to death, has been jailed for nearly eight years after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter 

Emergency crews were called to a residence in Easton, Bristol on August 10, 2020 to conduct a welfare check on Carter’s son, Bristol Crown Court heard.

The baby, identified by BBC as Remari Collins, was subsequently taken to Bristol Children’s Hospital for treatment. He died 11 days later.

‘Overwhelming medical evidence,’ witness statements and CCTV footage reportedly revealed that Carter was responsible for the infant’s death.

He is understood to have shook Remari so forcibly that he suffered rib fractures, respiratory failure and a catastrophic brain injury, according to Bristol Live.

The father called 999 and tried to perform CPR on the child. He then lied to paramedics and police about how Remari suffered his injuries.

It was only after being made aware of the evidence detectives had obtained, that Carter acknowledged that his actions led to his son’s death. 

Gareth James, mitigating, told the court that Carter had “lost his self-control” and was “otherwise a reasonable and caring parent”.

Mr James further alleged that Carter’s actions were ‘not premeditated’ and claimed the father has suffered depressive disorders since Remari’s death.

Carter admitted manslaughter of Remari at a hearing at the same court last month. 

‘These last years have been nothing but a living nightmare. It has been torture,’ the child’s mother said in a victim personal statement. ‘My heart aches every day and the pain is unbearable.

‘His life has been stolen from him. He was just 10-weeks-old when he died.

‘He has been robbed of a chance to grow up, have a childhood, go to school and university, have a first girlfriend, become a father and experience life itself.

‘I have been robbed of the chance to mother him, care for him and love him.’

Carter initially denied being responsible for his son’s death, but ultimately accepted the force he used resulted in the child’s ‘catastrophic injuries.’ He was cleared of murder because the act was a ‘momentary loss of control,’ Bristol Crown Court (pictured) heard

Detective Chief Inspector Roger Doxsey, the senior investigating officer, said: ‘This is a truly tragic case and our hearts go out to the young boy’s mother and family.

‘The force that Carter used, for whatever reason, was completely disproportionate and led to his catastrophic injuries.

‘He refused to accept his role in what happened for more than two years, until faced with the overwhelming medical evidence, and other evidence gathered from witnesses and CCTV footage.

‘It is of small comfort to the boy’s family that they do not have to sit through a trial which would undoubtedly have caused them even more distress.

‘They wanted Carter most of all to tell them what he did that day, and why he shook the boy with such force.

‘He has not yet done so in any detail, but we hope that today is a key step towards him accepting responsibility for his actions, and the young life that he took away.’

Carter was was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison today. 

The judge claimed was clear that he ‘mourned his son genuinely’ but claimed Carter did not show ‘genuine remorse’ because he initially lied about the incident.

He will serve two-thirds of his sentence in prison before being released on licence for the remainder of the sentence term.

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