Bedford woman who held boy under water jailed for two years

A drunken woman who held a young boy under water in a paddling pool, screaming “he is evil”, has been jailed.

Donna Curle, 42, of Muswell Road, Bedford, pleaded guilty at Luton Crown Court to assaulting the boy, occasioning him actual bodily harm.

The court was told that in June 2018 she had held the child under water for 20 seconds and repeatedly hit him.

On seeing what was happening, the boy’s mum plunged into the paddling pool in her back garden to wrestle with Curle and free the boy. As the mum pulled her son’s head above the water she could see his lips had turned blue.

The court was told Curle still has no memory of her actions because of her heavily intoxicated state, having become dependent on alcohol, and had been drinking heavily that day.

Judge Lynn Tayton QC jailed Curle for two years on Friday, and made her the subject of a restraining order not to have any contact with the victim and his family.