Father, 40, who blamed ‘aliens’ after hurling his young child off 40ft bridge ‘could not have been stopped’, serious case review finds
- Probe found ‘there were no indicators’ that could have predicted his actions
- Damien Smith jailed for 14 years in July for causing child grievous bodily harm
- Judge said Smith, 40, took amphetamine and was in a psychotic state at the time
- The child suffered a broken arm and a back injury, but survived, thanks to police
- The horror happened on a bridge over Eagley Brook in Bolton in September 2017
Damien Smith (pictured) was jailed for 14 years in July for causing the child grievous bodily harm with intent
A serious case review ordered after a father dropped his young child 40ft from a bridge into water has made a series of recommendations for public bodies and other professionals.
But the probe found ‘there were no indicators present’ that could have predicted – or prevented – his actions.
Damien Smith, who a court heard blamed ‘aliens’ for his behaviour, was jailed for 14 years in July for causing the child grievous bodily harm with intent.
A judge said Smith, 40, had taken amphetamine ‘to excess over a period of weeks’ and was in a psychotic state at the time.
The child suffered a broken arm and a back injury, but survived, thanks to police officers, who were waiting below.
The horror happened on a bridge over Eagley Brook on Crompton Way in Bolton in September, 2017. Smith then jumped off the bridge himself, but was arrested.
Witnesses said they saw him arrive with the youngster in a pram before he dangled the child over the bridge and threatened to let go.
The child was dropped by Smith after an hour-long stand-off with police.
Officers were waiting with specialist equipment and the child was immediately retrieved from the water.
A serious case review ordered after the father dropped his young child 40ft from a bridge over a brook into the water below has made a series of recommendations for public bodies and other professionals
The serious case review, ordered by Bolton Safeguarding Children Board and now published, said all professionals said that they were shocked by the incident.
‘There were no indicators present that would have predicted that father would have caused [the child] significant harm,’ the report said.
Smith denied the charge, but was found guilty after a trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Jurors were told there had been a change in his behaviour before the incident.
Serious case reviews are usually ordered when a child has died, or been seriously hurt, and examine the role of public bodies in terms of their safeguarding of a child.
The child suffered a broken arm and a back injury, but survived, thanks to police officers, who were waiting below (pictured)
The review in the case of Smith looked into his life, family history and involvement with healthcare professionals and other agencies.
Smith’s partner – the mother of the child dropped from the bridge – died ‘suddenly at home’ in 2015.
Two years earlier, another of their children passed away.
After the death of Smith’s partner, the review found he did not want counselling and ‘tried to maintain a routine’.
‘He was offered bereavement counselling, but did not want to take this up formally, although he did seek support from a local pastor and attended a couple of services and meetings at a local church,’ the report said.
The review found that the cumulative impact of the deaths on all family members ‘was not fully assessed by any agency’.
‘Opportunities for agencies to share information about the impact of multiple bereavements on individual family members are therefore limited,’ the review report said.
Smith, the review found, did not present to any agency with mental health issues and there was a view that he didn’t want to talk about his losses.
He was offered help and support after his partner’s death, but said he did not want to be involved.
The serious case review panel – which comprised of nurses, police and social services, led by an independent reviewer – met to discuss the case on five occasions.
A nursery, primary school and church were also involved.
The panel made five recommendations to the safeguarding board, including around improving support and training on the part of public services for bereaved families.
Chairman John Brimley said: ‘This was a harrowing incident which left a young child traumatised and suffering multiple injuries.
The horror happened on a bridge over Eagley Brook on Crompton Way in Bolton in September, 2017 (pictured). Smith then jumped off the bridge himself, but was arrested
‘I would like to express my sympathy to all those affected by what happened.
‘Were it not for the response of Greater Manchester Police, including the rapid deployment of trained officers with specialist rescue equipment, the outcome could have been far worse.
‘This independent review has looked closely at the circumstances of this family in the months leading up to the incident to see if any opportunities were missed to offer the family additional support following the loss of family members.
‘Bolton Safeguarding Children Board has already commissioned bereavement support training for practitioners, and discussions are progressing to deliver additional bereavement intervention services across Greater Manchester.
‘While the report finds that the father’s actions could not have been predicted or prevented, it does recommend a number of improvements to the way public services work with bereaved families in the future.’
Bolton council said it was ‘fully committed’ to implementing the recommendations.
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