A MOTHER whose two-year-old son drowned while she uploaded photographs to Facebook and taking a call from her boyfriend has been jailed for five years.
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Joshua Barnett died on 17 March past year after falling into a pond while playing in the garden at his home in Beverley, East Yorkshire.
Tragically, while left alone, Joshua slipped into a pond in the garden and was found unconscious by Barnett.
She was criticised by a judge at Hull Crown Court for her “bad parenting”, and was told she would pose “very serious risks” to any child she had responsibility for.
Claire Barnett, 31, was inside her house looking at her phone at the time of Joshua’s death.
Defence barrister Timothy Roberts, QC, said Barnett had been getting ready to take the family’s dog for a walk.
The courtroom been told that in fact Barnett implemented medical her son while watching for a police vehicle with their lights on coming in.
Barnett had also been accused of child neglect on a previous occasion.
Prosecuting lawyer Peter Moulson, QC, revealed that there was no information regarding for how long Joshua had been in the pond when Claire Barnett rescued him. At a previous residence social service had been called on Claire as she let her children run unsupervised through the streets and 2 of the children were nearly hit by a auto. “I trust that you will never be allowed to have further unsupervised contact to any child”, the judge said during Barnett’s sentencing.
Desperate attempts were made to save Joshua, but he died later that day in Hull Royal Infirmary. Judge Richardson had no faith remaining in the mother and added that she should not be trusted.
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‘You pose very serious risks to any child for whom you might have responsibility’.
