Ravinder Deol, 35, went on trial accused of killing her own daughter, who had survived major health problems after being born prematurely and ‘incredibly small’.
She allegedly ‘snapped’ and shook the child while her partner was sleeping after a 12-hour nightshift. He received a phone call from Ravinder just before 4.30 pm telling him to ‘come quickly’ as there was something wrong with the baby.
Deol, who worked in childcare for 10 years caring for infants from three months to five years old, was originally arrested after a post-mortem examination revealed that Ravneet had died of non-accidental head trauma. Yesterday, she went on trial accused of the manslaughter of six-month-old Ravneet by shaking her to death three years ago, on April 3, 2016.
Prosecuting, Jane Bickerstaff QC told High Court judge Mrs. Justice Whipple and the jury: ‘Though her age was six months, had she been born at full term she would have been 11 weeks rather than a six month old. She was also incredibly small.
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‘There is no suggestion that the defendant meant to kill her child or cause really serious harm to her. ‘Looking at the circumstances you may well conclude she snapped. She snapped because Ravneet was crying, she snapped out of pure frustration of the situation.’
Her partner told the jury: ‘I saw Ravinder holding Ravneet against her, she was crying. There was no movement in Ravneet face. Her eyes were slightly open, her color wasn’t right, her mouth was slightly open and to the side. I called 999 and started CPR,’ he added. Asked by the police what had happened Deol claimed the baby had been taking her milk as normal and had been asleep in her Moses basket in the living room but on her return from the kitchen, the baby was unresponsive.
She said she tried to rouse her, which is when she shook her. Ravneet was rushed from the home in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, to Stoke Mandeville Hospital where everything was done to try to resuscitate her including injection of adrenaline but she was pronounced dead at 17.12 pm.
Ravinder Deol had been on maternity leave from her work as a nursery assistant at the time. The court heard that the mother admitted she had "started shaking" the baby when she was questioned by police but the officer didn't pick up on what she said.