UK - Preston Davey, 13 months - murdered and SA’d by prospective adoptive parents

[MissMarple33]

Absolutely heartbreaking
It has taken me all day to read the court updates because I just cannot read it all in one go.
My heart is hurting for that poor sweet little boy

I can't say on here what I would do if I could get my hands on those two evil monsters
I hope someone gets to them in prison and makes them suffer.

 

[Silverlink]

That new photo of Preston in the article was taken by Varley the morning after his first sleep at their house. Heartbreaking to see how he was looking at Varley with such a happy and trusting look on his face.

 

[Dotta]

"Teacher accused of killing baby Preston Davey gave colleagues different accounts of how tot broke arm, ​

court hears."​

Teacher accused of baby murder 'gave colleagues different accounts of arm break'

Jamie Varley is accused of murdering 13-month-old Preston Davey less than four months after the youngster was placed in his care

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk

 

[Gemmie]

I can't say on here what I would do if I could get my hands on those two evil monsters

You don't need to. It's the same thing most all of us would do if we could.

 

[joe jones]

what always makes me so angry about these cases is that it was preventable, the teachers at the school he taught at knew something was wrong because different causes were given for his broken arm, call the police, keep calling until something was done, every social worker, the adoption organization should have immediately requested a full health check from the top of his head to his toes, the hospital staff, Drs and nurses and everybody who treated him, his record should have followed him and they would have seen that in a brief span of time he had breathing issues, he had a broken arm and noticeable bruising on his face, they should have called the police, and different social services staff who were independent,

if one of the many professionals (and I use the term loosely) had done their job correctly he could and should have been removed,

but they all failed him, and here in England we have had so many cases over the years where children have been seriously abused then murdered by a parent/s or caregiver/s whilst being visited by social workers, whilst being seen by Drs, whilst being taken to hospital, and it is only once the child is dead does the child get the attention it should have been given when alive,

just the broken arm alone should have had raised a thousand red flags, that and bruising on his face and they just let them take him home.

and the saddest thing is nothing changes, their are enquiries, policies are to be tightened up, reporting is to be done earlier at the first sign something is wrong, (mandatory reporting is a legal requirement but it never seems to be particularly mandatory to me) and we will still hear of other cases, until the law is the onus is on you as a practicing professional that if you fall down on the job and do not act to save a child you are legally culpable,

the answer should always be investigate, better to be wrong than have another dead baby because you thought these two white professional parents could never have harmed their child, the first thought that a child may be being abused should be your call to get everybody involved, to investigate, because they were Preston's protection from his parents (if you can call them that) and everybody in his life except for his foster family let him down, and I can only imagine the grief and trauma those wonderful foster parents have gone through, they handed over a beautiful baby boy, and 4 months later he was dead, but the only consolation in this story is that for the time he was with them he was cherished and adored, they doted on him,

 

[joe jones]

and yes those two defendants ultimately murdered him but they should not have had the opportunity to do so, it was obvious to anybody reading the reporting from court that they were not coping, the things they were saying were alarming, they seemed completely unprepared for a child like Preston who didn't sleep and had feeding issues although they were being managed,

the vetting process to me can't have been that good, because first thing new parents know is sleep goes out the window for a pretty long time, they seemed to want a baby but not be able to meet the needs and wants of a baby,

I only hope this trial sticks and we get to the verdicts, It will be interesting to see how the Judge sums up the evidence relating to the 1 murder charge before the jury get the case

 

[seasideForest]

they seemed completely unprepared for a child like Preston who didn't sleep and had feeding issues although they were being managed,

And who knows how much the adopted parents influenced the sleep problems? Idk when exactly the physical and sexual abuse started, but you can't expect an abused baby to sleep and feed well. The baby might, but also might not. And any adopted baby might take a while to adjust to new routines, with new caregivers in new surroundings. Even pets sometimes need time to adjust to new caregivers, so why not human babies??

Screaming for 40 minutes at a time (in the Manchester Evening News link a few posts above) - of course that's stressful for new parents, not to mention for the baby, but it happens, and parents have to be able to cope without taking their stress out on the baby (whether screaming at the baby or physically assaulting it).

I agree, they seemed totally unprepared. Nobody warned them in advance? They didn't read up on early child development and what parents should expect?? Idk. But it seems as if they didn't have too much realistic idea.
MOO

 

[Dotta]

I suspect
they ALLEGEDLY treated a baby - a human being - as an accessory.
As if - oh, it is time to start a family.
Let's adopt a baby.
Easy, peasy.
(Or,
as I also suspect,
the motive might have ALLEGEDLY been more sinister - taking into account SA).

The ALLEGED indifference of others to red flags in this case doesn't exactly surprise me.
The same situation happened with tortured Sara Sharif
and also in case of Southport murderer and his obvious dangerous/worrying behaviour.

People were afraid to intervene
(according to their own words as was reported)
in case they might have been accused of racism.
And I suspect, in this case - of homophoby.

People don't seem to understand
that their fear means nothing
when a child/a vulnerable person is being abused.

Societies that let the helpless and the most vulnerable suffer and be murdered,
are doomed.

This is obviously Only My Opinion.

JMO

 

[joe jones]

And who knows how much the adopted parents influenced the sleep problems? Idk when exactly the physical and sexual abuse started, but you can't expect an abused baby to sleep and feed well. The baby might, but also might not. And any adopted baby might take a while to adjust to new routines, with new caregivers in new surroundings. Even pets sometimes need time to adjust to new caregivers, so why not human babies??

Screaming for 40 minutes at a time (in the Manchester Evening News link a few posts above) - of course that's stressful for new parents, not to mention for the baby, but it happens, and parents have to be able to cope without taking their stress out on the baby (whether screaming at the baby or physically assaulting it).

I agree, they seemed totally unprepared. Nobody warned them in advance? They didn't read up on early child development and what parents should expect?? Idk. But it seems as if they didn't have too much realistic idea.
MOO

His foster family said he was the worst sleeper they had had in 25 years of fostering, but they were used to babies, and they accepted sleepless nights is a part of parenting, he also had issues with feeding which may also have exacerbated his sleeping problems, but they knew this, his whole routine and issues would have been told to them, they should have said no if they felt an older child or a baby with no issues would have been a more suitable choice,

if one reads between the lines the parent who was going to be the stay at home parent may have been struggling with problems of his own, he did ask somebody if they could get him medication (I think for depression as he didn't want to ask his Dr as he knew this would be flagged up when going through the adoption vetting) and their did seem to be some problems within the relationship of his adopted parents, and maybe they thought a baby would fix their issues who knows,

but to me from the court reporting they were not prepared for this baby, they did not have the parenting skills to deal with a baby who was such a poor sleeper, making no excuses for them but the bonding period is so important and they probably resented him from very early on, so the initial period where they were all to begin to bond and love their baby was off to a bad start because of Preston's poor sleep, that is all on them, if they couldn't deal with his lack of sleep give him back to a family that could deal with that

so to me they never bonded fully with him, they probably felt he had ruined their lives, he "whined" all the time as they said, and they were so not used to having to look after a baby, who would have been unsettled, who would have been anxious, it was all new to him, and I think the love that should have been growing never grew, and so picking him up a bit rough got some frustration out, blasting loud music so they didn't hear him crying didn't bother them, (me I am a sucker for those big fat tears that fall out of a babies eyes and that pouty bottom lip and could never leave a crying baby), and overtime he became more and more of a nuisance, the sexual abuse I have yet to hear all the evidence, but the teacher did try to explain away why their may be DNA (I assume semen) on the baby on the day he died to a friend who testified saying they shared a towel,

lack of a bond, not immediately falling head over heals for him, the idea of being a parent not matching the reality, and I think they just became even more overwhelmed and hurting him was his punishment for not being the baby or the parenting experience they wanted, and it escalated, and nobody stepped in to take him away, until one day whatever teacher was doing to him stopped him breathing and he could not be resuscitated,

 

[joe jones]

and I think I read in one of the reports that one of them had told the other (I call them teacher and salesman) I think it was salesman to teacher in a text that they were not going to be physical with them anymore, so the SA may have led from that, we shall never know the true story as they are never going to share it

 

[joe jones]

and I think they felt they could do to him what they wished as everybody seemed to blithely accept their explanations for his injuries, or for him stopping breathing, and because their seemed to be no consequences to what they had already done to him they became worse in how they treated him, as they probably felt they could explain away anything, and be believed, and as one poster has said they possibly felt that being two gay fathers professionals may have treated them with kid gloves, and not been as investigative or accusatory in case they were accused of homophobia

this may have meant that teacher went too far with whatever he was doing to Preston that stopped his breathing and killed him, (I can't type what I think he was doing unless it gets testified to in court but it makes me shudder at what may have been Preston's last moments) but even then I think they thought well we've taken him to hospital with breathing issues before with no consequences, we took him with a broken arm and bruising, they will believe us that it was all an accident and now we can go back to our baby free life like nothing ever happened, must have been a shock to the system when the cell door slammed shut

 

[Dotta]

and I think I read in one of the reports that one of them had told the other (I call them teacher and salesman) I think it was salesman to teacher in a text that they were not going to be physical with them anymore, so the SA may have led from that, we shall never know the true story as they are never going to share it

Which only shows the depravity and perversion.
There are many couples who, for whatever reason, cannot - quote - "be physical"
but it doesn't mean they start r*ping babies and murdering them In the process.

JMO

 

[joe jones]

Which only shows the depravity and perversion.
There are many couples who, for whatever reason, cannot - quote - "be physical"
but it doesn't mean they start r*ping babies and murdering them In the process.

JMO

I don't think it was because he couldn't it was because he wouldn't, which again to me says the vetting was not as thorough as it should have been, as the new adopted parents relationship would need to be very solid when one is introducing a new baby to first time parents, and if the professionals did not pick up on tension in their relationship what else did they miss

 

[Dotta]

and I think they felt they could do to him what they wished as everybody seemed to blithely accept their explanations for his injuries, or for him stopping breathing, and because their seemed to be no consequences to what they had already done to him they became worse in how they treated him, as they probably felt they could explain away anything, and be believed, and as one poster has said they possibly felt that being two gay fathers professionals may have treated them with kid gloves, and not been as investigative or accusatory in case they were accused of homophobia

this may have meant that teacher went too far with whatever he was doing to Preston that stopped his breathing and killed him, (I can't type what I think he was doing unless it gets testified to in court but it makes me shudder at what may have been Preston's last moments) but even then I think they thought well we've taken him to hospital with breathing issues before with no consequences, we took him with a broken arm and bruising, they will believe us that it was all an accident and now we can go back to our baby free life like nothing ever happened, must have been a shock to the system when the cell door slammed shut

agree

 

[Lucy6226]

what always makes me so angry about these cases is that it was preventable, the teachers at the school he taught at knew something was wrong because different causes were given for his broken arm, call the police, keep calling until something was done, every social worker, the adoption organization should have immediately requested a full health check from the top of his head to his toes, the hospital staff, Drs and nurses and everybody who treated him, his record should have followed him and they would have seen that in a brief span of time he had breathing issues, he had a broken arm and noticeable bruising on his face, they should have called the police, and different social services staff who were independent,

if one of the many professionals (and I use the term loosely) had done their job correctly he could and should have been removed,

but they all failed him, and here in England we have had so many cases over the years where children have been seriously abused then murdered by a parent/s or caregiver/s whilst being visited by social workers, whilst being seen by Drs, whilst being taken to hospital, and it is only once the child is dead does the child get the attention it should have been given when alive,

just the broken arm alone should have had raised a thousand red flags, that and bruising on his face and they just let them take him home.

and the saddest thing is nothing changes, their are enquiries, policies are to be tightened up, reporting is to be done earlier at the first sign something is wrong, (mandatory reporting is a legal requirement but it never seems to be particularly mandatory to me) and we will still hear of other cases, until the law is the onus is on you as a practicing professional that if you fall down on the job and do not act to save a child you are legally culpable,

the answer should always be investigate, better to be wrong than have another dead baby because you thought these two white professional parents could never have harmed their child, the first thought that a child may be being abused should be your call to get everybody involved, to investigate, because they were Preston's protection from his parents (if you can call them that) and everybody in his life except for his foster family let him down, and I can only imagine the grief and trauma those wonderful foster parents have gone through, they handed over a beautiful baby boy, and 4 months later he was dead, but the only consolation in this story is that for the time he was with them he was cherished and adored, they doted on him,

I agree. As you pointed out in the next post the onus ultimately lays with these two monsters. However.

It highlights (yet again) how important information sharing is. If the hospital were happy with the explanations for the injuries and it tallied with what they told the social worker then I can almost understand why it wouldn't be questioned. Although injuries, especially broken bones are rarely accidental in non mobile children. 3 in as many months is alarming even if they were classed as accidents. There's something clearly wrong in some safeguarding issues imo.

Had the work colleagues shared their concerns about the changing explanations to the Social Worker, or even anonymously via Childline or something. They could have looked further into this and compared what had been told to whom. I can only imagine the guilt they must feel now. Sometimes people don't feel they can report something because they have no proof of abuse or they think it's not worth reporting one 'little niggles'. But is so important for social workers and other professionals to put all these 'little niggles' together to show the bigger picture.

 

[Dotta]

As the wise saying goes:

"It takes a village to raise a child"

The community/Society (village)
actively cares for children,
providing them with a safe and healthy environment.
Safeguarding them.

It emphasizes
that raising and protecting a child is the common goal of the entire community/Society.

No turning back when abuse is happening,
no pretending to be deaf and blind when a child is being tortured.

Recognizing that societal institutions play a part in nurturing children.
After all,
children are Society's treasure.
They mean Hope.
They mean FUTURE.

JMO

 

[Silverlink]

Back in court for day 4, so far we have heard from teacher Carly Wilson, headteacher Rebecca Warhurst and neighbours Jasmine and Michael Nuttall, who have commented on how regularly Preston cried and how they thought this was unusual. More images and videos are also being presented.

Jury taken through a number of images and videos to be shown in trial

On May 12, Mr Varley shared a health visitor report with the WhatsApp group 'All Things Preston', the group with social workers in.

He said Preston wasn’t well the night before, his breathing was rapid and they called 111 but didn’t get a call back.

On May 13, a picture of Preston in a paddling pool was captured on Mr Varley’s phone. The prosecution shows a zoomed in image which he says the jury will be told about bruising to Preston.

On May 15, there is a text message from Mr Varley to his partner: "Can you PLEASE try and get home for our son? I’m struggling here x"

On May 16, there is another picture of Preston in a high chair with a zoomed in image. The jury will be told more about this later.

The jury is shown two videos from May 16 which show Preston in the bath, playing and ‘talking’. The prosecution shows stills from the videos, which Mr Wright KC say show the condition of Preston’s arm and face.

A video, shared with Mr Varley’s mother Karen Graham, shows Preston naked, playing on a playmat. At the start of the video, Mr Varley can be heard saying ‘he’s getting fed up now’.

Another video taken 25 minutes later shows Preston on the same mat, also naked.

Preston Davey trial LIVE as two men in court following death of 13-month-old

Jamie Varley, 37, and John McGowan-Fazackerly, 32, face a string of charges following the baby's death

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I don't even think they started out with good intentions. The abuse began too quickly. It was severe and repeated. And no one SAs a baby unless they want to. This is who these men are, whether "their" baby was constantly crying/whining or not.

 

[Silverlink]

If only this was taken further at the time Preston would still be alive.

Preston taken to A&E in need of immediate resuscitation on May 25, jurors told
On May 25, Preston was taken to the A&E department at Blackpool Victoria Hospital. Mr Varley ran into the department with Preston in his arms.

A hospital record noted it was reported Preston was having a seizure. He was breathing but unresponsive and floppy. He was in need of immediate resuscitation.

At 15.41 a hospital record said Preston had an episode of shortness of breath three weeks ago but didn’t get a call back. Preston underwent tests including a cranial CT scan which showed no abnormalities. A chest Xray showed some haziness, possibly a sign of a chest infection.

He was discharged on May 28.

The clinical summary on discharge noted Preston had two old bruises to his forehead.

The head of safeguarding at Lancashire Constabulary noted that she had been informed Preston presented with unexplained injuries which were inconsistent with the version of events given.

Dr Katkat examined Preston and confirmed he had a medical issue - a chest infection likely to be three weeks old. Bruising to his head was explained as Preston had just started crawling.

 

[MissMarple33]

So many missed opportunities to help this poor little boy.
More professionals involved in his life that the average child and red flags galore. Yet not one person, with the power to do so, saved him
I feel absolutely heartbroken for Prestons foster parents
They knew something wasn't right. Seemingly the only people in Prestons life to care about him