A MOTHER begged the Magistrate’s Court to keep the man who had kicked her baby in the head out of prison. And she got her wish when Christopher Ogier was sentenced to four months in prison suspended for two years and placed under one year’s supervision.
During a row on 28 December, a drunken Ogier had kicked out at the crying baby’s walker, sworn and told the child to shut up, the court heard.
His foot slipped, however, and he struck the baby in the head.
In court, Ogier, 29, of 12, Rougeval Estate, Rouge Rue, St Peter Port, admitted assaulting the child.
He had several previous convictions, but maintained that it had been an accident.
The court heard that the baby suffered a bruised swelling and abrasion.
Advocate David Domaille said that his client was pushing the baby walker away, but his foot slipped as his shoe was wet.
He said that Ogier was ‘appropriately ashamed’ of what he had done.
Advocate Domaille added that his client had received written threats of violence from serving prisoners and feared these would be carried out if he were jailed.
The child’s mother wrote a letter to the court pleading for Ogier to receive a suspended sentence. Advocate Domaille said the court should place most weight on this.
He added that Ogier had stopped drinking and taking drugs since the incident.
The Probation Service also recommended a suspended sentence so that it could work with Ogier on a number of issues, including bereavement.
The court heard that the defendant had begun to self-medicate with alcohol following the death of his father.
Assistant-Magistrate Philip Robey said that he was sure Ogier would be horrified if he described him as a child abuser.
But he said that this was child abuse.
Mr Robey said that when Ogier got drunk and behaved like that, a child was likely to get injured and, on this occasion, one had been.
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