Toddler fell from first floor window because Northampton mother was too drunk to see

When police arrived, she reportedly tested as four times the legal limit to drive
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A Northampton mother got so drunk she was "oblivious" to her daughter climbing out a first-floor window and falling to the tarmac below, a court heard.

Northampton Crown Court heard yesterday (June 14) how the little girl suffered a fractured eye socket and severe bruising when her mother failed to see the accident despite being in the same room as her.

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Even as a neighbour gathered up the screaming toddler and tried to alert the woman, she was unaware anything had happened.

A Northampton mother was so drunk she never noticed her toddler had climbed out a first-floor window and fallen to the street below.A Northampton mother was so drunk she never noticed her toddler had climbed out a first-floor window and fallen to the street below.
A Northampton mother was so drunk she never noticed her toddler had climbed out a first-floor window and fallen to the street below.

When police and an ambulance arrived, the woman, who will not be name for the sake of her child, blew a level of 1.27 on a breathalyser - nearly four times the legal limit to drive.

"Any sober and responsible adult would never let their child go anywhere near that window," prosecutor Mr Andrew Peet told the court.

"The reality is this defendant was so drunk she didn't even realise her baby had done what she did."

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The court heard how the mother was the only adult in the house in the incident in May last year.

Police later reported the lock on the window had been previously removed. Cigarette butts on the window sill suggested it was regularly used as a spot to smoke. The child reportedly did not have a cot or bed either.

The prosecutor said the little girl was "very lucky" not to suffer even more serious injuries.

The mother, who cannot be named to protect the identity of her child, later pleaded guilty to allowing a child to come to injury while being in charge of them.

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His Honour Judge Rupert Mayo said: "Because of your lack of care and because you chose to drink she was able to fall from a first-floor window.

"If you ever need a reminder of what you did to your child, ask your barrister for the photos [of her injuries] attached to the case files. They would be deeply shocking to any parent."

The court heard the woman had submitted to rehabilitation since the incident and was "deeply remorseful". She was handed a 10-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months an ordered to complete 30 days of rehabilitation work.