In the Media

Man found guilty of murdering ex-girlfriend's five-year-old son

PUBLISHED May 14, 2012
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An unemployed man has been found guilty of murdering a five-year-old boy who had been admitted to hospital on several occasions before his death.

Tyler Whelan died in March last year after collapsing at his home in Sheepwalk, Paston, near Peterborough.

His death followed three earlier admissions to hospital which had prompted doctors to contact social services.

At Cambridge crown court on Monday, his mother's former partner Elvis Lee, 34, was found guilty of murder after almost 11 hours of jury deliberations. The boy's mother, Stephanie Whelan, 27, was found guilty of allowing the boy's death.

Whelan, of Sheepwalk, but originally from Wigan, and Lee, of Crabtree, Paston, were each cleared of two counts of cruelty or neglect relating to their failure to seek prompt medical attention on previous occasions. A further charge of neglect against each of them was withdrawn.

Whelan sobbed and hung her head as the verdict was delivered. Lee shouted at jurors and protested his innocence as they left the courtroom.

The court heard Lee had 56 previous offences, including dishonesty, affray and violence. Police had been alerted to alleged attacks by him on Whelan but he was never convicted. The judge ordered that the pair be remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date.

A serious case review, assessing the handling of Tyler's care by agencies including social services, is expected to be published shortly.

During the trial, prosecutor Christopher Donnellan said that the boy suffered "non-accidental" injuries including a broken leg and injuries to his penis in the year before his death. After he broke his leg, medics contacted social services who decided to take no further action, he added.

Donnellan said that on the day of his death Tyler was covered in severe bruises after he was kicked, hit and bitten by Lee. He told jurors that Whelan knew Lee was capable of violence as she had suffered a series of attacks.

Doctors at Peterborough City hospital tried to resuscitate Tyler for 20 minutes but he was beyond help. Donnellan added: "He died from a number of injuries which he suffered a few hours before he was taken to hospital.

"These included a blunt force trauma to the head and a blunt force trauma to the abdomen."

In evidence, Lee said that Tyler had hurt himself after falling off a breakfast bar on the morning of his death. He admitted that he kicked and bitten Tyler later that day after he had hidden behind a chair as Lee called for him.

In a statement read to jurors, Whelan said Lee had seemed "normal" on the day of Tyler's death.

When she was asked if Lee may be responsible for the death, she said: "If he's the one that hurt my baby, I want him dead. My little boy didn't deserve it. He was so special, he was my rock."

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