The Homicide of “Baby P”, Case Study Example

Introduction

Few crimes are perceived as more heinous than infanticide, as no human life is more vulnerable than that of an infant, and as cultures demand the utmost in the safeguarding of a baby’s well-being as a parental duty and natural impulse.  Some nations define infanticide by age, but most hold to it as the intentional murder, through neglect or abuse, of a child under five years (Fisher, Lab, 2011,  p. 479).  Age notwithstanding, infanticide elicits outrage, and usually the mother is deemed responsible, her actual role in the murder aside.  The horror of the crime as a violation of maternal care is such that the mothers as victims themselves is disregarded (Spinelli, 2003,  p. xv).  All of this becomes inescapably clear in the murder of “Baby P,” discussed in the following.

The Crime Type

The death in 2007 of Peter Connelly, aged 17 months, was determined to be homicide, or infanticide, resulting from abuse.  The baby’s mother, Tracey Connelly, and her boyfriend, Steven Barker, were both charged and convicted of the physical abuse which caused the child’s death (BBC News, 2009).

Specifics

In August of 2007, the infant Peter Connelly was discovered dead in the home of his mother, Tracy Connelly, in the Haringey section of North London.  Several months later, Connelly, her live-in partner Steven Barker, and Barker’s brother, Jason Owen, were charged with homicide, as it was evident that the baby had suffered extreme physical abuse.  The child had in fact been admitted to St. Ann’s Hospital a day earlier, at which time severe injuries were not detected by the examining doctor and the baby was returned to his mother.  An ambulance was called to the home on the following day and, despite resuscitation attempts, the child died.  The post-mortem revealed a broken back, broken ribs, missing teeth, extensive bruising, and mutilated fingers (BBC News, 2012).  Connelly herself was immediately arrested, as were Barker, Owen, and Owen’s 15 year-old girlfriend, who had been living with Connelly.  All had fled to a campsite in Epping Forest.  As the investigation proceeded, the names of the victim and those charged with the murder were not disclosed, due to the fact that the baby had four siblings at that time being placed in foster care.

Victimology

The victim’s age inherently offers no substance for evaluating personal characteristics.  By all accounts, Peter Connelly was a normal infant, and all that marks him as unusual is the documented history of injuries suffered within his brief life.  Born in March of 2006, bruising on the child led to the mother’s arrest in December of that year, and the child placed in temporary foster care for five weeks.  Steven Barker had been living with the mother prior to this incident, and the baby was once again hospitalized in April of 2007, as he had extensive bruising, black eyes, and swelling in his head. The mother was arrested again in May when a social worker noticed more evidence of physical abuse on the child.  At the time of his death, the child had suffered over 50 injuries, including broken bones and a broken back (BBC News, 2012).  All indications blatantly point to an ongoing history wherein the infant was beaten and/or tortured by Connelly, Barker, and/or by Owen and his girlfriend.

An ancillary victomology involves the grandmother of Barker and Owen, Hilda Barker.  The men had been charged with assaulting the woman in an effort to compel her to alter her will in their favor; the charges were dropped only after the 82 year-old woman died before giving evidence.  She had previously informed the police that Barker and Owen had locked her in a wardrobe closet (BBC News, 2009).  There is as well a conviction against Barker for the rape of a two year-old girl identified only as ‘X’ (BBC News, 2010), which adds to the victim count linked to Peter Connelly’s murder.

Offender Profiles

Tracey Connelly

In assessing the character of Tracey Connelly, investigation invariably and consistently reveals at best a grossly negligent mother.  Connelly’s own attorney described her as, “lazy and inadequate,” as the young woman, a mother of five by her mid-twenties, spent her days on Internet chat rooms and rarely attended to basic hygiene.  There is also evidence that Connelly herself had been a victim of child abuse, as she had been taken from her own mother at the age of 12 when social agencies found the woman unfit to raise a child (Hughes, 2009).  There was no exact determination of who had inflicted what injuries to the boy, but Connelly’s active role is evident in other circumstances, transecnding ennabling and indicating participation.  In July of 2007, for example, it was found that the baby had been smeared with chocolate in order to disguise bruising from a social worker, and this strongly indicates cooperation between the mother and Barker.  When the boy was examined on the day before his death, Connelly opposed a complete examination by claiming that the child was, “grouchy.”  Social workers also noted the state of the home as grossly unsanitary, with feces on the floors.  Weapons and Nazi paraphernalia were also observed (Corby, Shemmings, & Wilkins, 2012,  p. 62).  It is then reasonable to conclude that Tracey Connelly’s character was negligent to the point of abuse, even if she herself did not actively participate in the ongoing cruelty.  Moreover, Connelly adheres to the model of abusive adult in that, in over 72 percent of cases of infant abuse of this kind, the perpetrator is a biological parent (Miller-Perrin, Perrin, 2012,  p. 165).

Steven Barker/ Jason Owen

With regard to Steven Barker, investigation reveals more of a pathology than a character.  Aged 32 at the time of his arrest for Peter Connelly’s murder, Barker’s history clearly reveals criminal tendencies going to sadism.  It was 10 years before he met Tracey Connelly, for instance, that he and his older brother Owen were charged by their grandmother for assault.  Each brother had disclosed to family members that the other had terrorized them in their youth, and Barker expressed to the police that he lived in fear of his brother’s killing him (Hughes, 2009).  The veracity of these accounts notwithstanding, there remains the conviction of Barker for raping a two year-old girl, exacerbated by Barker’s attempted appeal; he fought the conviction by claiming that the victim was not competent to testify, a tactic dismissed by the presiding judge (BBC News, 2010).  It is possible that Barker is clinically sociopathic, if not psychotic.  At the same time, his various efforts to lessen the severity of his convictions, including stressing concerns for his safety while incarcerated (BBC News, 2009), indicate a distinct awareness of his own actions.

Less is known regarding Jason Owen, who had changed his name from Barker to deflect inquiry when he became involved with his 15 year-old girlfriend.  That Owen resided in the Connelly home during the times when Peter was so horrifically abused, however, along with his participation in terrorizing the grandmother and his evident sexual attraction to minors, points to a character as innately corrupt as that of his brother. Both men also very much conform to the established characteristics of physical and sexual abusers of children: they are intimitately involved with the family; they are of below-average intelligence; and, particularly in regard to Barker’s rape conviction, they are young males with histories of sadistic behavior (Flowers, 2000, p. 128).

Intervention Issues

Failures

The blatant failure of social services to properly respond in this case emphasizes a potent dilemma: the rights of parents remain an obstacle in cases of suspected abuse of children, which in turn limits resources: “Only a small percentage of all resources specifically earmarked for child maltreatment in the United States is actually devoted to prevention” (Thomas et al, 2012).  It is only fair to conclude that agencies are restricted as to the extent of their authority. That said, the circumstances of Peter Connelly’s life and death are such as to render the lack of intervention extraordinary.  On at least four separate occasions within the 17-month life of the child, external parties witnessed clear evidence of physical trauma to him.  On at least two occasions, the grossly unsanitary condition of the home was noted,  Most strikingly, the infant was examined by a doctor on the day before his death and was released back to his mother’s care despite the blatant signs of abuse.  A GP,  Dr Jerome Ikwueke, saw the baby 14 times before his death (BBC News, 2012). Social workers were as well aware of Connelly’s history as unstable, just as the ongoing efforts to place her other children in foster care were potent motives for at least greater investigation.  There is, unfortunately, no escaping the reality that it is difficult to conceive of a case wherein intervention is so consistently demanded by the facts in evidence.  It is then all the more regrettable that the one occasion where action was taken, when the child was removed from Connelly only months after birth, was so poorly handled.  At that time, the baby was placed with a “family friend”; given the nature of Connelly’s life, this could hardly be deemed an effective strategy for ensuring the welfare of the infant.

Repercussions

Repercussions following the murder have been many, with agencies and personnel alike dismissed and/or facing severe sanctions.  Dr. Ikwueke, for example, was suspended from the General Medical Council (BBC News, 2012).  Nonetheless, the failures in intervention in this tragic case defy explanation.  If there is concern regarding parents’ rights, so too is there cause for scrutiny regarding a seemingly inexplicable agency disregard.

 Relevant Trends

Ample evidence existed to reveal that Barker and Owen were a dangerous element in the home.  As noted, Barker had a violent police record and had clearly indicated unstable, if not psychotic, tendencies, and it is established that such behavior follows patterns.  Research reveals that, when such young men take on the “stepfather” role, they typically abuse the mother and alternate between decent care for the child and violent abuse (Harne, 2011,  p. 91).  Added to this is Connelly’s own history, noted earlier, as a victim of at least neglect and likely physical abuse.  Such parents account for more than 70 percent of child abuse cases, and more than half of all murders of children are committed by the mother or father (Brookman, 2006,  p. 186).  Supporting this is research revealing that these abuse cycles are greatly lessened when the initial victim receives therapy and/or the support of a non-abusive adult (McQueen, Kennedy, & Sinason, 2008,  p. 20).

Ultimately, even a cursory knowledge of the backgrounds of Connelly, Barker, and Owen greatly affirms the overwhelming risk to a child in their care.  Plainly, what is evident was abuse gaining in horrific impact as it moved through generational cycles.  In assessing the entirety of Peter Connelly’s life and death, and in noting the inescapable facts regarding his mother and those living in the household, the conclusion must be reached that, incident after incident, this was a murder preventable on multiple occasion.

References

BBC News. (2012). Timeline of Baby P Case. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11626806

BBC News. (2010). “Baby P Killer Steven Barker Loses Rape Appeal.” Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/8471960.stm

BBC News. (2009). “Couple Behind Baby P Death Named.”  Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8194235.stm

Brookman, F. (2006). Understanding Homicide. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Corby, B., Shemmings, D., & Wilkins, D. (2012). Child Abuse: An Evidence Base for Confident Practice. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Fisher, B. S., & Lab, S. P. (2011). Encyclopedia of Victimology and Crime Prevention. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

Flowers, R. B. (2000). Domestic Crimes, Family Violence and Child Abuse: A Study of Contemporary American Society. Jefferson: McFarland & Co.

Harne, L. (2011). Violent Fathering and the Risks to Children: The Need for Change. Portland: Policy Press.

Hughes, M. (2009). “The Killers: A  Lethal Pairing of Inadequacy and Sadism.”  The Independent. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/the-killers-a-lethal-pairing-of-inadequacy-and-sadism-1770267.html

McQueen, D., Kennedy, R., & Sinason, V.  (2008).  Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy After Child Abuse: The Treatment of Adults and Children Who Have Experienced Sexual Abuse, Violence, and Neglect in Childhood. London: Karmac Books.

Miller-Perrin, C. L., & Perrin, R. D. (2012). Child Maltreatment: An Introduction. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Spinelli, M. G. (2003). Infanticide: Psychosocial and Legal Perspectives on Mothers Who Kill. Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Thomas, D., Leicht, C., Hughes, C., Madigan, A., & Dowell, K. (2012). Emerging Practices in the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. Washington, D.C.: U.S.          Department of Health and Human Services.  Retrieved from https://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/programs/whatworks/report/report.pdf