Murdered baby's last hours on CCTV before dying of 'worst injuries cop ever saw'
This is the last time that a 10-month-old baby was seen alive just hours before being murdered by his own parents.
Finley Boden was subjected to a "savage and brutal" campaign of abuse that left him with 130 separate injuries at the time of his death on Christmas Day 2020.
They included a fractured thigh and broken pelvis, burn marks and 71 bruises, with Finley also having sepsis and endocarditis - an infection of the lining of the heart.
Today, Shannon Marsden and Stephen Boden were jailed for life, with Marsden for a minimum of 27 years and Boden 29 years, for killing their son just weeks after he was returned to their full-time care following a Family Court order.
During the trial, Derby Crown Court was shown footage of Marsden pushing Finley in his pram around Chesterfield town centre on Christmas Eve.
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CCTV shows 10-month-old Finley Boden's final hours before being murdered by his own parentsBoden was later captured on CCTV entering a Tesco Express with the pram at 7.16pm. It was the last time that Finley was seen alive.
By Christmas Day, Finley was dead, murdered by his parents surrounded by dirt, filth and clutter.
After Boden and Marsden were convicted, Paul Bullock, a Detective Inspector at Derbyshire Police, said the injuries were "amongst the worst I've seen in my 27-year policing career".
Following his death, Boden was heard mentioning how he would sell Finley's pram on eBay and the pair were later seen laughing together in a taxi.
Finley was subjected to a "savage and brutal" campaign of abuse (Derbyshire Police)During the trial, the 30-year-old suggested that Finley's injuries could have been caused by rocking him too hard, and said that the pram comment was made in an attempt to "lighten the mood".
It was also said that when visiting Finley's body in a hospital chapel of rest, 22-year-old Marsden was heard to say: "His dad's battered him to death. I didn't protect him."
The jury saw images of the couple's cluttered home, including pictures taken by police showing cannabis paraphernalia next to gone off baby milk, and heard how the pair hid their abuse from social workers and family members.
Finley's clothes and bedding were found to be stained with saliva, blood and faeces.
They have now been jailed for life (PA)Use of the class B drug was a key theme in the days immediately before Finley's death, with one drug deal witnessed by a social worker during an unannounced visit in December 2020.
Mrs Justice Amanda Tipples remanded the pair into custody after their convictions following a trial which began last October.
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Boden has 22 previous convictions for 33 offences, said the prosecutor, but not for violence. He has a number of convictions for cannabis including production and possession of the class B drug.
Marsden has no previous convictions.
The jury saw images of the couple's cluttered home, including pictures taken by police showing cannabis paraphernalia (Derbyshire Police)Mrs Justice Amanda Tipples remanded the pair into custody after their convictions following a trial which began last October.
The results of a review of Finley’s case will be released later this year.
A spokesperson for Derbyshire County Council said: “The courts have released a selection of documents regarding decisions made by the Family Court in Finley’s case.
Finley died just weeks after being returned to his parents' care (Derbyshire Police)“The author of the independent Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review commissioned by the Derby and Derbyshire Safeguarding Children Partnership will consider the information contained within these documents to help form the partnership’s learning findings and recommendations.
“Our deepest sympathy goes to everyone who knew and loved Finley and we remain fully engaged with the statutory legal review process which looks in depth at the role of all agencies following the death of a child.
"Strengthening practice is a constant focus for children’s services and when the review is concluded we will be in a position to communicate more fully about this case."
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