In 2019, the Offender Database recorded that Sharleen Hughes, then 36, was jailed for five years for her role in the death of 22-month-old Ella-Rose Clover. On appearing at Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing, it was reported that Hughes had failed to protect the toddler from her partner, Michael Wild, who was jailed for life for the child’s murder. The court reported that Wild, of Somerton Avenue, Wythenshawe, Manchester, repeatedly punched the defenceless girl while she was in his care.
The investigation established that Ella-Rose was frequently left in the care of Hughes, a family friend. Greater Manchester Police reported that on 21 January 2018, Wild was left alone with the toddler, who later died from severe abdominal injuries. The prosecution reported that Hughes, of College Bank, Rochdale, Greater Manchester, attempted to pervert the course of justice by encouraging her 12-year-old son and his friend to lie to paramedics and police about her whereabouts during the attack.
Judicial Findings and Investigative Detail
The court reported that professional medical staff had also been “blinded” by the belief that Ella’s bruising was caused by a non-traumatic medical condition. Liverpool Crown Court heard how Hughes ignored the significant risk of serious physical harm posed by Wild, despite the numerous injuries the child had sustained over several months. The prosecution reported that Hughes’s actions were a case of “criminal negligence” and that she had actively sought to cover up for Wild to divert attention from her own failure to protect the child.
Mr Justice King noted that there were too many incidents for Hughes not to be aware of the danger. For her actions in Manchester and Rochdale, she was convicted of allowing the death of a child and two counts of perverting the course of justice. The judge noted that while Wild received a life sentence with a minimum term of 20 years for murder, Hughes’s five-year sentence reflected her “deliberate disregard” for the welfare of the toddler she was supposed to be minding.
Sentence and Statutory Requirements
For their crimes in England, the following sentences were handed:
- Michael Wild: Life imprisonment (minimum term of 20 years) for murder.
- Sharleen Hughes: Five years in prison for allowing the death of a child and perverting the course of justice.
- Judicial Oversight: Sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court.
- Criminal Record: Convictions for murder (Wild) and criminal negligence/perverting justice (Hughes).
- Origin: Wythenshawe, Manchester and Rochdale, Greater Manchester.
Monitoring and Public Protection
Wild is managed by the prison estate and will remain a high-risk category prisoner for the duration of his life sentence. Hughes, upon her release on licence, is managed by the National Probation Service in the Rochdale area. Due to the “extreme” nature of the violence against a 22-month-old in Manchester, both offenders are subject to stringent oversight by the Public Protection Unit.
Following their convictions, authorities highlighted the importance of early intervention when non-accidental injuries are suspected. Hughes’s history of prioritizing her partner over the safety of a child in her care necessitates that she remains under professional supervision for the duration of her licence. Any further involvement in neglectful behaviour or breach of licence conditions in Greater Manchester or elsewhere will result in immediate arrest and a return to prison to serve the remainder of her term.
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