Mother jailed for killing toddler

Keanu Williams' lifeless body was found by paramedics after his mother's partner Luke Southerton dialled 999, claiming the boy had stopped breathing, was pale and had not been well.

Although fatal injuries had been inflicted up to 48 hours earlier, his mother Rebecca Shuttleworth did not seek medical help before the 999 call was made at 7.42pm on 9th January.

At the start of the trial, prosecutor Christopher Hotten QC told the jury Keanu's injuries were not an "isolated event" but had been the culmination of a long period of ill-treatment which left him with numerous injuries.

See more: Toddler found with 37 injuries to his head, back and legs

During his sentencing remarks, Mr Justice Spencer said: "The abdominal injury which killed Keanu was a massive tear of the mesentery, the apron of fat which provides the blood supply for the whole of the intestine.

"The force required to cause such an injury was very great indeed, likened by the pathologist to the forces in a road traffic collision.

"It must have been the result of heavy punches, a stamp or kick, or other blows. The depth and extent of bruising to Keanu's back strongly suggests he must have been thrown or slammed against the floor or a wall or another firm surface for at least part of the attack upon him."

A serious case review into Keanu's death, which is expected to examine social services contact with his mother, will be published in the near future.

In a statement the chairwoman of Birmingham's Safeguarding Children Board acknowledged that chances to take action had been missed.

Jane Held, the independent chairwoman of the multi-agency Board, said:

DCI Caroline Marsh has been speaking outside Birmingham Crown Court following the sentencing of a mother who beat her two-year-old son to death.

Rebecca Shuttleworth, 25, was ordered to serve at least 18 years in jail after being convicted following a six-month trial of murdering Keanu Williams.

Explaining how he had arrived at the 18-year minimum term, Mr Justice Spencer said the murder was aggravated by several factors:

Sentencing Rebecca Shuttleworth Mr Justice Spencer said:

Two-year-old Keanu Williams was found dead in his home in January 2011. His mother Rebecca Shuttleworth has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years after being convicted of beating him to death.

The jury were told that when he died Keanu had 37 separate injuries including extensive bruising to his head, stomach, back and legs, as well as previous burns to his foot.

The former partner of a woman found guilty of murdering her two-year-old son has been given a suspended sentence and 200 hours community service.

Keanu Williams, whose body showed 37 external marks of injury, was found dead in January 2011.

Luke Southerton, was yesterday found guilty of wilful assault.

The 31-year-old will also have to complete 30 days of victim awareness work.

Keanu's mother, Rebecca Shuttleworth, 25, was found guilty of murder and jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years.

DCI Caroline Marsh has spoken outside court and said that there are lessons to be learnt after the death of Keanu Williams: "There is a lot of learning to come out of this investigation. The serious case review has looked in detail at the two years that lead up to Keanu's death."

Speaking about the extreme nature of the case and the investigation DCI Marsh said: "It was an extremely harrowing case, a two-year investigation and six-month trial and that takes a toll.

"This journey has been exhausting and what my team and I will do is go and debrief the last two years and try and to understand what has happened and move on with our lives, and hopefully never have to deal with a case like this again."

Rebecca Shuttleworth has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years for the murder of her two-year-old son, who was beaten to death following months of ill-treatment.

The trial at Birmingham Crown Court heard how the body of her son Keanu Williams had 37 external injuries, a fractured skull and a fist-sized tear on his stomach when he was found dead in January 2011.

Shuttleworth's former partner - Luke Southerton - was cleared by the jury of murder, manslaughter and causing or allowing Keanu's death, but convicted on one count of cruelty.

The detective in charge of the investigation said it was the "worst" child abuse case she had ever seen.