A HAMPSHIRE man shook a baby so severely it caused a brain injury, a court heard.

Daniel Holdaway, from Southampton, is accused of “deliberately” and “excessively” shaking the child, causing the infant to go “lifeless and limp”.

Southampton Crown Court was told Holdaway allegedly lost his temper and shook the baby on three different occasions during a two-month period, the first two causing fractured ribs and the third resulting in the child suffering from brain haemorrhaging.

The 21-year-old, from Clovelly Road, St Mary’s, is standing trial charged with three counts of grievous bodily harm on a child. The offences are alleged to have taken place over a two-month period. He denies all three charges.

Prosecutor Andrew Houston told the court that the baby was rushed to Southampton General Hospital, after the youngster suddenly had difficulty breathing and started to turn blue.

He said once in hospital the child had a head scan that showed bleeding around the brain, which they say was caused by the baby being shaken a short time before the ambulance was called.

Mr Houston claims the baby, which cannot be identified for legal reasons, “had been shaken badly by the defendant”, as he was the sole carer of the child during the hour before paramedics arrived.

The court also heard how further X-rays on the child found three fractured ribs, which the prosecution claim were inflicted by the defendant on two separate occasions, up to seven weeks before.

The jury of nine men and three women were told that medical experts would give evidence to show the “serious injuries” suffered by the infant could only be caused by deliberate shaking.

Mr Houston said one doctor would explain that “significant injuries such as these can be caused by a momentary lack of control, leading to a single excessive shaking. He says these sort of injuries to the brain do not come about through normal handling, rough play or domestic trauma such as falling off a sofa or bed”.

The prosecution claims the medical evidence is such that the doctors say the only explanation for the abrupt change in the child’s condition is that it had been a victim of a traumatic event originating with a firm shaking by Holdaway.

Speaking about Holdaway, Mr Houston added: “The picture we say you will get is of an immature young man, short tempered and frustrated.”

The trial is expected to last four weeks.

Proceeding