Two grandparents have been found guilty of the murder of their two-year-old grandson while his mother was upstairs.
Ethan Ives-Griffiths was dangerously dehydrated and severely underweight, with 40 visible bruises or marks, when he collapsed with a catastrophic head injury at his grandparents’ home in Flintshire, North Wales, on Aug 14, 2021.
A jury at Mold Crown Court convicted Michael Ives, 47, and Kerry Ives, 46, of his murder and of cruelty to a child under 16.
Shannon Ives, Ethan’s mother, 28, who had been staying with her son at her parents’ home in Garden City when the court heard he was “targeted for abuse and subjected to casual cruelty”, was found guilty of causing or allowing his death and of child cruelty.
A jury heard that Ethan’s fatal head injury was caused by deliberate force or shaking and occurred at the time, or in the minutes before, he collapsed.
A jury convicted Michael Ives, 47, and Kerry Ives, 46, of the murder of the two-year-old - North Wales Police/PA
Michael and Kerry Ives, originally from Wolverhampton, were in the living room with Ethan at the time of his collapse while his mother was on the phone upstairs.
Both told the jury “nothing” had happened to the toddler before he fainted as they watched television.
Kerry Ives said she immediately called Ethan’s mother to come downstairs, but the court heard it was 18 minutes before she called emergency services.
Kerry Ives and her husband were in the living room with Ethan at the time of his collapse - North Wales Police/PA
Ethan was taken to the Countess of Chester Hospital and later transferred to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, where he died two days later.
The court heard Ethan had been placed on the child protection register, requiring him to be seen every 10 days, but when Shannon Ives last saw her social worker, on August 5, she spoke to him on the doorstep and told him Ethan was having a nap.
No one answered the door when Michael Cornish, a social worker, went to visit in the days before Ethan’s death and a scheduled appointment with a health visitor on August 13 was cancelled.
Shannon Ives had fled domestic violence from her home in Mold in June that year, the jury was told.
Her parents accused her of hitting her son, with Michael Ives telling the jury his daughter was “quick-tempered” and would slap Ethan a couple of times a day.
But Shannon Ives told the court her parents were “horrible” and abused her as a child.
Shannon Ives had fled domestic violence in June that year - North Wales Police/PA
Jurors were visibly upset at points during the five-and-a-half week trial, particularly when CCTV footage from August 4, taken from the back garden of the family’s four-bedroom home, showed Ethan appearing unsteady on the trampoline, or lying down, while other children bounced. The video appeared to show Michael Ives point the garden hose at him, place the toddler’s hands on his head and gesture to another child to punch Ethan.
After watching the recording in court, Michael Ives said he felt “ashamed” and admitted being cruel and neglectful of the toddler, but denied mistreating him in other ways.
The cameras did not show Ethan leave the house after August 4 until August 12, when Michael Ives was seen again carrying him by the upper arm, putting him into a car seat and appearing to punch towards the youngster.
Caroline Rees KC, prosecuting, described the act “as though Ethan was just a bag of rubbish to be slung out”.
When Ethan was examined by doctors after his death, he was found to have abdominal injuries likely to have been caused by blows in the days before his collapse.
Other injuries included bruises which were consistent with grip marks on his leg and face.
Michael Ives said he felt ‘ashamed’ and admitted being cruel and neglectful of the toddler - North Wales Police/PA
Experts said Ethan would have died of dehydration within days had he not suffered the head injury. At the time of his death, he weighed just 10kg, the court was told.
The jury deliberated for six hours and 54 minutes before returning their verdicts on Tuesday morning.
Mr Justice Griffiths told them that because of the “unusually distressing” subject matter in the trial, they could be exempted from jury service for the rest of their lives if they wished.
He said Michael Ives and Kerry Ives would be given life sentences and Shannon Ives faced a “substantial prison sentence”.
The defendants will be sentenced on October 3.
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