KAREN VICTORY OF WITHAM SENTENCED TO NINE YEARS FOR CHILD ABUSE IN ESSEX

In November 2011, a babysitter from Witham, Essex, named Karen Victory, was sentenced to nine years in prison after being convicted of child abuse involving a three-year-old boy. Victory was found to have subjected the child to severe physical injuries, including biting, pinching, strangulation, and scalding.

The abuse came to light in February when Victory called emergency services (999), fearing she had accidentally caused the boy's death. The court heard that the child was suffering from at least 40 injuries, such as bite marks on his thighs, buttocks, and groin. Victory pleaded guilty to charges of assault, unlawful wounding, cruelty, and causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Prosecutor Andrew Jackson explained that Victory told police “hour after hour of wicked lies” to conceal her maltreatment of the boy, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. Describing her police call, Mr. Jackson stated: “She said her daughter had been playing a game involving scarves tied around the boy’s neck. She told officers she had gone into the bedroom and found the victim lifeless on a bed and was worried she might have killed him. Later, she admitted, ‘I have bitten him everywhere to get him to shut up.’”

Paramedics reported the injuries to authorities, leading to Victory’s arrest. A doctor involved in the case described the boy’s injuries as “the worst non-accidental injuries” he had ever encountered. It was also revealed that, on an earlier occasion, Victory had severely injured the boy’s feet by holding them under hot bathwater.

During the hearing, Sarah Vine, representing Victory in mitigation, explained that Victory’s background was troubled; her parents had died young, and she grew up in foster care. Vine stated that Victory had been vulnerable and involved in an “appallingly violent” relationship. She added, “However horrific these offences were and whatever level of revulsion they quite properly provoke in the minds of those who have heard about them, this was not an act of sadism. Her behaviour, whilst appalling and shocking, was at its heart an overspill of the most tragic kind — an overspill of unmanaged and unaddressed emotions. I cannot say enough on her behalf to express her remorse. She does not weep for herself.”

Judge Anthony Goldstaub QC sentenced Victory and said, “He was not your child but you were looking after him as a minder and you had the responsibility of caring for him for a few weeks. When paramedics found him, he was limp and appeared to be dead. He was taken to hospital and staff found approximately 40 injuries. He screamed when touched.”

As part of her punishment, Victory, of Foxglove Close, was also banned from working with children for the remainder of her life.