A MOTHER who shook her six-month-old baby boy causing him a serious “life-threatening” head injury has escaped an immediate jail sentence.

Her son has since made “a good recovery” after he was attacked but was “ashen and listless” when emergency services arrived at their home.

The 36-year-old mother, from Newport, pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm, the offence being committed in 2016.

Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe told Cardiff Crown Court: “The child’s injuries were caused by abusive head trauma, the likely mechanism being shaking.

“Only the defendant can know the degree and duration of shaking involved but it was shaking to a level that would have been obviously inappropriate to an independent bystander and would be likely to cause injury.”

Mr Cobbe added: “The defendant caused the child to suffer injury in the minutes before the call to the emergency services.

“Luigi Matrella, clinical team leader of the Welsh Ambulance Service, received a rapid response call requiring attendance at the defendant’s home.

“He arrived at the address. He found the defendant in the living room holding the baby. He noted the child was ashen and listless.

“The defendant was very distressed. Mr Matrella recalls her saying that ‘she found him like it’, and ‘he had not been well for a couple of days’.

“Mr Matrella began basic life support measures, during which time further assistance arrived – a community first responder and two police officers.

“He showed one of the officers, Sean Meyrick, how to continue CPR (an emergency procedure).

“A short while later an ambulance arrived. The baby was taken to the ambulance, Sean Meyrick continued with CPR en route to the hospital.”

The court heard how the victim was taken to Newport’s Royal Gwent Hospital where a CT scan showed a large subdural haemorrhage.

It was recommended that the baby be transferred to the Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital in Cardiff for further neurosurgical assessment.

Mr Cobbe said that a doctor “identified a number of abnormalities on the scans and concludes that the abnormalities are likely to be due to an episode of abusive head trauma involving a shaking mechanism.”

The court heard the injury had been “life-threatening”.

James Tucker said in mitigation that his client suffered from depression and accepted responsibility.

He added: “The character references, both personal and professional are to her credit.”

The Recorder of Cardiff, Judge Eleri Rees, told the mother: “In fairness you did not seek to attribute blame on to anyone else.”

She sentenced the defendant, who had no previous convictions, to 15 months in jail, suspended for 12 months.

The woman must also pay £1,800 prosecution costs and a victim surcharge.

Outside the court, Kelly Huggins, a senior crown prosecutor with the CPS, said: “The defendant originally denied any responsibility for the injuries discovered, but through the detailed medical reports which were obtained by the CPS we were able to demonstrate the cause of injury.

“Faced with the strength of expert evidence the defendant eventually accepted her guilt.”