A father has been convicted of murdering his five-week-old daughter after a court heard she suffered repeated and sustained physical abuse throughout the entirety of her short life.
Sean Jefferson, 35, of Walsall, was found guilty of murder at Stafford Crown Court on Monday following an eight-week trial. He was also convicted of causing or allowing the death of a child and two counts of grievous bodily harm with intent.
The baby’s mother, Amy Leigh Clark, 34, of Lichfield, was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child.
The infant, named Darcy, collapsed at her home in Burntwood on Sunday 27 March 2022 — Mother’s Day — and was taken to hospital, where she died two days later. West Midlands Ambulance Service had alerted police, and both Jefferson and Clark were arrested the following day.
A subsequent investigation by the Major Investigations Team established that Darcy had died as a result of a catastrophic head injury. Examination revealed the full extent of the abuse she had endured: by the time of her death, she had sustained 47 rib fractures and fractures to both legs, injuries that had occurred across at least three separate occasions. Further injuries were also identified.
Jefferson and Clark were charged in May 2025 following what police described as a complex investigation. Both are due to be sentenced at Stafford Crown Court on a date yet to be fixed.
Detective Chief Inspector Ian Fitzgerald, of the Major Investigations Department, said Darcy had been “violently abused and murdered by her father” while her mother allowed her death, describing the behaviour as “despicable” against a defenceless child. He said the thoughts of the investigation team remained with Darcy’s elder sibling, who had faced “an unimaginable loss and a lengthy judicial process.”
