Magistrate locked up over death of child

A long-serving magistrate was today behind bars over the death of his partner's two-year-old daughter.

Rashpal Chana, who served as a JP for almost 20 years, and his ex-partner Eva Logina were convicted of the manslaughter of Kristiana Logina.

Chana was jailed for four-and-a-half years at Nottingham Crown Court yesterday while Logina received a six-year sentence. The toddler died of septic shock after suffering severe burns in a scalding hot shower.

The jury heard Logina, 25, and her then boyfriend Chana, 49, who both now live in Smethwick, failed to seek medical treatment for the toddler's burns. Logina and Chana, who were living together in Tennal Road, Harborne, at the time of the death, had both denied manslaughter.

Chana, now of Dibble Road, Smethwick, who was not present when the scalding occurred, was charged with manslaughter after Kristiana died at Birmingham Children's Hospital in February last year.

The 49-year-old has also worked as a teacher, receiving the Queen's Award for services to the science community while seconded to Keele University in Staffordshire. The trial was told Kristiana, whose mother is originally from Latvia, died after suffering 10 per cent burns to her body when she was held under the scalding shower.

The pair, who claimed not to realise Kristiana was badly injured, applied creams and bandages, but never took her to be assessed and treated by medical professionals, the court heard.

At the start of the trial, Timothy Raggatt, QC, said Kristiana was injured between 10 days and a fortnight before her death in the paediatric intensive care unit at Birmingham Children's Hospital.

Logina, now of High Street, Smethwick, was given a concurrent one-year jail term after being found guilty of child cruelty by a majority of 11-1.