Heartbroken Milton Keynes dad calls for more justice after his baby daughter was tragically killed by her grandfather

Adam Whelan and Jade Davies left five-month-old baby girl in the care of Jade’s stepfather Richard Loasby for a short period.

But his offer to babysit took a tragic turn when the little girl was rushed to hospital with fatal brain injuries consistent with being severely shaken.

Loasby pleaded guilty in 2020 to manslaughter of the tot and was sentenced to six years and four months in prison.

Adam, who lives in Milton Keynes, said: “The sentence carries an automatic release date of January 2024. He will not even need to apply for parole. It’s just not right.”

He and Jade, who have an older son together, have launched a petition on the the UK Government and Parliament site calling for the law to be changed so much stiffer sentences can be given to anybody who is convicted of killing a child.

You can access the petition here.

The couple are urging people to sign it and share it on their social media to gather as many signatures as possible.

If it reaches 10,000 signatures the government will respond to it, but if it achieves 100,000 signatures the request will be considered for debate in Parliament.

Loasby, who lived in Weston Favell, had at first claimed the baby’s death was an accident but then admitted in court he had shaken her. He has never revealed why.

Judge Mayo said during his sentencing: "The assault on a defenceless baby involved a high risk of serious injury that must have been obvious to you in the moment that led to you shaking her."

Loasby claimed he had a ‘mild to moderate learning difficulty’. But the judge told him: "There is no defence in the mental function to reduce your understanding of the fragility of a baby of less than five months of age. You must have known that as you assaulted her - you knew it was.”

The court heard how the Jade feels lost, struggles to cope most days and she does not think she will ever come to terms with her daughter's death.

She said at the time: "Never could I imagine my life changing in this way... Never can I hold my baby girl again - my life has been destroyed. We've been through two years of hell and I don't feel that remorse has been shown."

Adam was so profoundly disturbed by the loss of his daughter that he could not work, which put a financial toll on the family.

Jade said: “My baby daughter was in the care of a trusted family member when she tragically lost her life. He took advantage of an innocent child who couldn’t defend herself.

“We don’t want anybody else to go through what we have. Six years is not enough. There should be much tougher and stronger sentences for anyone found guilty of manslaughter of someone under the age of 18.

"The minimum sentence for certain types of manslaughter is one year. I want this law in place because the sentencing of manslaughter is not enough time to serve for taking a child’s life.”