A tragic case has emerged from Ipswich, where a young mother was cleared of her toddler’s murder, but her boyfriend was found guilty after a lengthy trial.
Chelsea Gleason-Mitchell, 24, was tearfully acquitted of the murder of her two-year-old daughter, Isabella Wheildon.
The jury, after deliberating for over seven hours, unanimously convicted her partner, Scott Jeff, also 24, of the child’s murder.
Jeff’s brutal treatment of Isabella led to her death in 2023, and his actions were described as callous and fatal.
The Abusive Relationship Unveiled
Over the course of a six-week trial at Ipswich Crown Court, the jury heard that Isabella had suffered from escalating violence at the hands of Jeff, with Gleason-Mitchell failing to intervene.
The court was told that Jeff’s frustration over potty training led him to inflict repeated physical abuse on the toddler, which left her with multiple injuries.
He subjected her to cold showers as punishment, which only added to her suffering.
Despite witnessing the abuse, Gleason-Mitchell did nothing to stop it, according to the prosecution.
Although Gleason-Mitchell admitted to causing or allowing Isabella’s death and two charges of cruelty, she denied physically harming her daughter.
She claimed that Jeff was responsible for all the physical abuse.
Jeff, on the other hand, initially tried to shift blame, saying he found Isabella injured before her death, but the jury dismissed his claims.
Both defendants were remanded in custody until their sentencing on December 13.
A Mother’s Denial and a Heartbreaking Discovery
The tragedy took an even darker turn when, after Isabella’s death on June 26, Gleason-Mitchell and Jeff kept her body hidden for several days.
They pushed her lifeless body around in a pushchair, covering her face with a hood, even taking her on a shopping trip.
It wasn’t until June 30, four days later, that police discovered her body.
A friend of Gleason-Mitchell had received a message from her, claiming that Isabella had “died in her sleep” and was in her pushchair in the bathroom.
When police arrived at the East Villa temporary accommodation unit, they found Isabella’s body under blankets in the shower area.
The smell and the bruising on her face indicated that the child had been dead for several days.
A post-mortem confirmed that Isabella had suffered severe abuse before her death, with fractures and soft tissue injuries across her body.
Her cause of death was determined to be bone marrow embolism, caused by injuries that led to embolisms in her lungs, impairing her ability to breathe.
Life with Jeff: A Pattern of Abuse
Before Isabella’s tragic death, Gleason-Mitchell had a history of turbulent relationships, starting with her early pregnancy and split from Isabella’s biological father, Thomas Wheildon.
After the breakup, she began a relationship with Jeff, who quickly became involved in Isabella’s life.
The prosecution revealed that from May 2023, when Jeff entered the picture, Isabella’s life became one of escalating abuse.
The couple’s behavior was alarming, with numerous witnesses reporting seeing Isabella neglected and mistreated.
At the St George Hotel in Great Yarmouth, one witness described seeing Jeff slap Isabella, and another reported him putting her in a shower with the water running.
Despite these signs, Gleason-Mitchell did nothing to protect her daughter.
As the couple moved between temporary accommodations and campsites, their neglect continued.
Isabella was seen in public with bruises and a black eye, often dressed in a jacket despite warm weather, likely to conceal her injuries.
Gleason-Mitchell’s sister even warned her to leave Jeff, but she stayed with him, and the abuse only worsened.
Denial, Lies, and a Tragic Attempt to Cover Up
Jeff’s behavior after Isabella’s death raised further suspicions.
On the day of her death, he searched online for information about what to do when a child stops responding.
The couple continued to act as though nothing had happened, even taking Isabella’s body to a service station and later shopping in Ipswich with her corpse in the pushchair.
When confronted by police, Jeff initially denied any responsibility for Isabella’s death, claiming that he had tried to revive her.
He later suggested that Isabella may have died due to an accident.
However, his narrative was inconsistent with the evidence, and his attempts to cover up his actions failed to convince the jury.
The Final Sentencing Looms
As both defendants await sentencing in December, the court case has left a community devastated by the brutal reality of child abuse.
The judge made it clear that Jeff would face a life sentence for his actions, with a minimum term to be decided.
For Gleason-Mitchell, her failure to intervene in her daughter’s abuse has resulted in her facing serious charges, even though she was cleared of murder.
This heartbreaking case has left many wondering how two adults could be so negligent and cruel, and the legal system will now determine the appropriate punishment for their actions.
This article was published on TDPel Media. Thanks for reading!
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