A MUM has been jailed for 22 months after leaving her baby son alone to drown in the bath.
Simone Perry, 27, made a phone call and messaged a friend on WhatsApp as five-month-old Renzo Lake slipped off a baby bath seat and drowned in less than six inches of water.
The mother was found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter following a trial at Northampton Crown Court last month.
She was jailed for 22 months today as a judge slammed Renzo's 'completely unavoidable death'.
The court was told Perry frantically dialled 999 after discovering Renzo unconscious in the water at their home in Northamptonshire.
But she later lied to police and paramedics and didn't tell them that she had been distracted on her phone.
Judge Adrienne Lucking QC told Perry: "On discovering Renzo, you immediately called the emergency services and tried to resuscitate Renzo.
"When the paramedics arrived you told them that you had left your baby for about four minutes… and it was your fault.
"Subsequently you gave an account of events to a number of doctors but you omitted to tell them about using the phone.
"I am sure that was because you knew you had allowed yourself to be avoidably distracted."
Perry initially denied using a phone in a police interview, the court heard.
The judge said it had been a deliberate attempt to mislead the investigation and deny responsibility for the baby's death.
Judge Lucking added: "I am satisfied that you remain in denial of your responsibility for your son's death and your lies were in part a reflection of the fact that you have not yet accepted that you are responsible for the death of your baby.
"This is an extremely serious offence resulting in the death of a baby and the consequences were completely avoidable.
"In my judgment, tragic though your situation is, I would be failing in my public duty if I did not impose an immediate custodial sentence.
"Babies and young children are at serious risk of death or grave injury if left unsupervised in a bath, and even more so if their carer is avoidably distracted."
Detective Sergeant Kerry Chavush, from Northamptonshire Police's Child Protection Team, said: "Expert evidence was provided during the trial that stated a bath seat should never be considered as a safety device and is never a substitute for adult supervision.
"There are no winners in this case and it is so sad that a baby boy who had his whole life ahead of him has been taken away from this world in such a heart-breaking and dreadful way."
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