Couple found guilty of 2 year old grandson’s murder

Local TV

A couple in North Wales has been found guilty of the murder of their two year old grandson, alongside his mother being found guilty of causing or allowing his death. Ethan Ives-Griffiths has been remembered as a ‘smiley, outgoing, loving child’ by his father. The three defendants will be sentenced in October.

Transcript

00:00Ethan Ives Griffiths was just two years old in 2021, when he was murdered by the people

00:06closest to him.

00:07Remembered by his father as a smiley, outgoing, loving child, his grandmother and grandfather

00:11have been convicted of his murder, with his mother also found to be complicit.

00:16His grandparents, Michael and Kerry Ives, have been found guilty of his murder.

00:19His mother, Sharon Ives, has been convicted of causing or allowing his death, and of child

00:24cruelty.

00:25Ethan died in August 2021 after collapsing at the family home in Garden City in Flintshire.

00:31When he was taken to hospital, he was dangerously dehydrated, severely underweight and had more

00:35than 40 visible bruises and marks.

00:37The doctor said he had been so neglected that even without the fatal injury, he may have

00:42died within days.

00:44The jury heard medical evidence that Ethan's fatal head injury was caused by deliberate

00:48force or shaking and occurred at the time or in the minutes before he collapsed.

00:53For a five week trial at Moldcrown Court, jurors were shown distressing CCTV footage from the

00:58family's home.

00:59In one clip, Michael Ives carried Ethan by one arm, in another he appeared to punch the

01:04toddler while putting him in a car seat.

01:06Other videos showed Ethan being targeted, hosed down and forced to stand with his hands on

01:10his head as a punishment.

01:13Questions will now be raised of how this was allowed to happen.

01:15Ethan was on the child protection register, meant to be seen every 10 days.

01:19A social worker was turned away in the days before his death, and a health visit was cancelled

01:23the day before he collapsed.

01:25No one intervened.

01:26A multi-agency review is now underway to examine how the system failed to protect Ethan, but

01:31it may not report until 2026.

01:34The judge said this was an unusually distressing case and told jurors they'll never have to

01:38serve again if they don't wish to.

01:39The three defendants will be sentenced in October.

01:42James P. Watkins reporting for local TV.

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