There were “missed opportunities” and “critical moments” when authorities could have helped the families of two toddlers murdered at home, a safeguarding study has found.
Two-year-old Maya Chappell was subjected to frequent attacks and was eventually shaken to death by her mother’s new boyfriend, Michael Daymond, when he was angry over the loss of his benefits. He was convicted of murder and his mother, Dana Carr, was found guilty of allowing his death.
In another case, three-year-old Dwelaniyah Robinson was severely burned and beaten with a cane by her mother Christina Robinson, who was convicted of murder by violent shaking or blow to the head. She claimed to follow the teachings of the Bible in inflicting blows on the young man.
The two tragic child murders occurred three months apart in 2022 and in the Durham County Council area.
Neither family was involved in social services before the murders.
The local authority has now completed a joint review of child protection practices to learn lessons from “deeply distressing cases”. Such examinations are often carried out when a child has died or suffered serious harm.
Two-year-old Maya Chappell was subjected to frequent attacks and eventually shaken to death by her mother’s new boyfriend, Michael Daymond.
In another case, three-year-old Dwelaniyah Robinson was murdered either by violent shaking or head trauma.
The independent report by social work consultant Suzy Kitching made nine recommendations and concluded there were “a number of opportunities where additional support and services could have been offered” to the two children’s families.
The review identified two cases where the children’s fathers raised concerns with police, but these were not passed to social services.
Maya’s father expressed concerns about Daymond after he began living with the little girl and her mother, Dana Carr, who was jailed for nine years for “turning a blind eye” to the abuse.
He asked police if he had a history of domestic violence or child sex offenses under “Claire’s Law” and “Sarah’s Law”.
Police contacted Carr by phone, but officers then closed the case because she claimed she no longer had a relationship with Daymond, the report states.
He said: “The decision to close the application, based solely on the mother’s self-assessment and the lack of an in-person follow-up visit, showed a limited understanding of the nature of domestic violence and abuse and their impact.”
“It also prevented any further opportunity to gather details about the mother’s new partner and assess possible risks via a Claire’s Law disclosure.”
He added that “although additional security checks should have been carried out” by the force, there is no indication that this failure contributed to Maya’s death.
Previously, Dwelaniyah’s father told Stockton-on-Tees police he had been assaulted by his wife, but did not make a formal complaint.
He then said his wife “was a wonderful mother and she didn’t want to pursue” the domestic violence case.
Michael Daymond (left) and Dana Carr (right) were both convicted of Maya’s death after Daymond fatally shook her at her home in 2022.
Christina Robinson, 30, claimed she followed the teachings of the Bible but was convicted of murder following the death of her son Dwelaniyah.
The report said: “There is no information to suggest that a referral has been made to children’s services, but given the context of the referral, i.e. men are less likely to report an incident that women, a proactive referral to children’s services would have been helpful here. » .
Lack of continuity in medical visiting services has been highlighted as another factor in toddler deaths.
In Dwelaniyah’s case, the report notes: “There were nine health visitors and two early years practitioners involved with the family, which inevitably complicated the transfer of information and could impact on continuity of care. »
For Maya’s family, five health visitors were involved as well as a duty health visitor giving advice over the phone.
In the two weeks before Maya’s murder, Carr “contacted the health visitor service and spoke to a health visitor on duty to ask for help.”
A home visit was recommended, but because Carr had moved, the case was passed to a new medical visiting team.
The home visit should have taken place within two weeks, but “in two weeks, events exceeded” this deadline and Maya was murdered.
The report’s author said there was “no indication that an urgent response was necessary” when the two-week deadline was set.
Ms Kitching says in the report “there is a risk of applying hindsight bias and seeking to overestimate what might have been known or done, particularly as most information about children and families does not were known only after the incident.
Adding: “However, in both cases there were opportunities or acute moments where some support could have helped the families. »
Daymond was given a life sentence and a minimum term of 20 years after being found guilty of Maya’s murder last November at Teesside Crown Court.
Robinson, 30, was found guilty of her son’s murder in March following a trial at Newcastle Crown Court and has not yet been sentenced.
She said there was a need for professionals caring for families to be “more curious” and “think critically about situations and events”.
The report concludes that the review made it possible to “learn lessons” regarding children and families, but above all “there is nothing to suggest that it could have prevented the tragic deaths of these two young children”.
Dave Ashton, chairman of the Durham Safeguarding Children Partnership, said: “These are deeply distressing cases resulting in the tragic deaths of two young children, and our thoughts and sympathies are with all those who loved and cared for them. ‘them. »
He added: “The lessons learned from the review have been shared across the partnership and we are working together to implement the recommendations.
Daymond, 27, was sentenced to life and a minimum term of 20 years after being found guilty of Maya’s murder last November at Teesside Crown Court.
Robinson, 30, was found guilty of her son’s murder in March following a trial at Newcastle Crown Court and has not yet been sentenced.
dailymail us
