Murdered baby was put back into his drug addict parents' care weeks before they ... trends now
Ten-month-old Finley Boden was placed back in his drug-taking parents' care just months before they murdered him after a Family Court was told they did not pose an unmanageable risk, new documents show.
A transcript of a Family Court hearing, held over the phone during the pandemic, has been released following an application to the High Court by the PA news agency and other media.
It shows that despite calls by the local council for a gradual four-month transition back into the care of parents Shannon Marsden and Stephen Boden and drug testing for the pair, the court ordered he be returned to them within eight weeks without any tests.
It also reveals that Finley was given back to his parents despite them appearing to lie about their drug use, with multiple drug deals taking place in the days immediately before his murder.
Finley died on Christmas Day 2020 after a campaign of abuse at the hands of Marsden and Boden, which left him with 150 injuries including multiple bone breaks and fractures, bruises and burns.
The 10-month-old died just over a month after being returned to his parents' full-time care at their home in Old Whittington, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, in November 2020, after a court order made at a hearing at Chesterfield Justice Centre on October 1.
Ten-month-old Finley Boden
Stephen Boden and Shannon Marsden, who were convicted of murder
The transcript of that hearing shows that the parents were said not to 'pose such a risk' to Finley that it was 'not manageable' or required him 'to be placed out of their care in the foreseeable future'.
The documents also show the court ordered Finley to be returned to his parents within eight weeks, despite social services asking for a four-month transition due to having 'some concerns' over Boden and Marsden's cannabis use and parenting abilities.
Finley was placed under a care order a month before he was born due to concerns over the home environment and his parents' use of the class B drug.
Other documents released by the court show that the house was found by social workers to smell of urine and cannabis, with litter and flies around the property.
While being looked after by carers, Finley began to see his parents at scheduled meetings, which were also attended by social services.
While Boden and Marsden were found to make improvements while Finley was in care, including cleaning the house and decreasing their drug use, social worker reports from September 2020 said that the pair had 'not yet had the opportunity to fully demonstrate their ability to meet the needs of Finley' or to protect him from harm.
One social worker also warned that Finley would be 'at risk of suffering from neglect, physical and emotional harm' if his parents continued to use drugs or failed to continue making positive changes.
At the Family Court hearing, a representative for Derbyshire County Council said 'all parties' agreed that the plan for Finley should be for him to 'transition'
