Dad downed 11 pints and violently shook child son simply weeks after profitable custody

Christopher Yates had managed to get custody of his child despite it being known he had alcohol issues and within three weeks, he had left him with catastrophic and life-changing injuries

A father left his baby son with devastating brain damage and blindness after violently shaking him following a binge on 11 cans of lager and cocaine. Christopher Yates had been granted custody of his child despite known alcohol problems, and within just three weeks and four days had inflicted catastrophic and life-altering injuries in a horrific assault.

Under the influence of drink and drugs, he flew into a rage when the seven-month-old infant was crying during the night and shook him with such brutal force he sustained injuries typically seen in high-speed road traffic accidents. He then callously ignored the severely wounded tot and delayed seeking medical assistance for hours, retreating to the bathroom where he wrapped a towel around his head to block out the child’s cries.

Newcastle Crown Court was told Yates, 30, of Morris Road, Swalwell, Gateshead, initially lied about his actions before eventually admitting to the appalling act of violence against the helpless infant. He confessed to violently shaking him repeatedly while screaming “shut the f*** up”.

The court was told the baby was born in March last year and was taken into care with foster parents. Upon discovering his paternity, Yates collaborated with social services and successfully obtained custody, with the court hearing he had the “best of intentions but underestimated how difficult he would find it”.

The court was told Yates’ relatives were well aware he’d battled with drink problems and suspected during the assessment and transition period he was consuming alcohol excessively. A fortnight prior to the offence, his family concluded he was finding it difficult to look after the infant and seemed frustrated with him, sometimes appearing under the influence, reports Chronicle Live.

They urged him to get assistance from social services but his relatives didn’t fully grasp just how much he was battling, the court was told. Yates claimed he had anticipated greater support from social services than he received once he gained full and exclusive custody at the start of September.

During a visit from a relative, they discovered the infant hadn’t been clothed, the house was chaotic, there were soiled nappies scattered about and empty booze cans suggested Yates was drinking heavily. They also overheard him yelling furiously at the baby when he wept and he called him a “little s***”.

When questioned about why he was drinking excessively after battling so hard to secure custody, he responded: “I can do whatever I want.”

The court was told Yates had a track record of alcohol and substance abuse since his teens and was known to possess an “explosive temper” when influenced by drink.

He started telling his relatives he didn’t believe he could manage and that he might need to return the infant but he didn’t proactively seek assistance from social services or the foster carers. The day before the assault, in October last year, Yates left the baby with relatives at the Metrocentre, requesting they care for him longer than originally arranged.

When he eventually reunited with them, he had been consuming alcohol and cocaine and attempted to mask the odour with aftershave.

He went back home with the infant and at 8.15 the next morning he contacted emergency services reporting the youngster was having a seizure.

The baby was rushed to hospital and Yates initially provided one version of events before altering it to claim the baby had tumbled from a rocking chair. Yet following his arrest, he subsequently confessed to being responsible for causing the injuries.

He revealed he had downed 11 cans of Foster’s lager and snorted a line of cocaine and when the baby stirred for his 2am feed he was wailing non-stop.

He explained he held him at arm’s length and violently shook him five times while yelling “shut the f*** up”. He then placed him in his cot and retreated to the bathroom for an hour with a towel wrapped around his head to muffle the sound of his crying.

Yates added that he reacted out of frustration and desperation and apologised repeatedly.

Sentencing him, Judge Julie Clemitson said: “Only three weeks and four days after receiving (him) into your sole care, you admit, in the early hours of the morning, you lost control of your temper. You were under the influence of alcohol and cocaine, you’d had 11 cans of Foster’s and a line of cocaine.

“The episode of shaking is described as exacting the sort of force expected in a high velocity road accident. Yet it was several hours later you took him to hospital.”

Due to Yates’ initial lies, doctors treated the baby for fits but it was only later, when a CT scan was carried out, that the full extent of his potentially life-threatening injuries were revealed. The infant had suffered bleeding on the brain, was experiencing seizures and had extensive haemorrhaging to both eyes, bruising to his chin, a faint purple mark on the bridge of his nose, prominent blood vessels in both eyes and grazes on his abdominal wall.

It was uncertain whether he would survive for a period.

He has been left with a series of severe complications and his life expectancy is likely to be reduced. Judge Clemitson said: “Simply put, the effect of this offending has been catastrophic.”

In a victim impact statement, the child’s foster mum said he was with them from birth and “melted our hearts” He is now back with them and she said: “If we had know what we know now, we would never have let him go.”

Of Yates, she said: “He was the one person who should have loved and cared for him.”

The woman added: “He suffered the most horrendous life-changing injuries at the hands of Christopher Yates. We didn’t know if he was going to survive but he is a little fighter.

“He has lost his sight now and he will be on medication for the rest of his life. Christopher Yates has robbed this little boy of the life he should have had. He needed someone to look after him.

“He has broken his brain, he has broken his life, he has broken everyone’s hearts. All he had to do was phone us and we would have been straight there.

“(The baby’s) dad, who was supposed to love and care for his every need has caused these horrific injuries to his innocent little baby, who couldn’t fight back. He has changed his life forever, and ours.

“He is our family, we love him and he is back where he is safe. We hope, one day, his sight may return. We promise we will never give up on (him).”

Yates, who has a history of eight previous convictions, admitted to causing a child to suffer serious physical harm in October last year and received a four-year prison sentence.

Judge Clemitson stated: “No sentence can undo any of the harm and distress to (the baby) and those who care about him. Their lives, and indeed yours, are changed irrevocably and forever.

“(He) will never live the life he should have lived, he is consigned to a life of narrow horizons and a life of being reliant on carers.

“This sentence is not intended as a measure of the devastation that is done to his and (his foster parents’) lives. No sentence could ever be such a measure.”

Rachel Hedworth, defending, said: “He is unable to put into words how utterly sickened he is by his own behaviour. He was simply not equipped with the life skills to cope with the responsibilities of looking after a tiny baby.

“When asked by me why he didn’t raise it with professionals that he couldn’t cope with looking after the baby, he said he was terrified the baby would be taken from him. He didn’t anticipate he would lose control in the way he did on that particular day. He is sad and sorry.”

Miss Hedworth added that Yates had endured violence as a child and suffers from mental health problems.