A north Cumbria man was caught on camera repeatedly striking his stepson on the head and legs.
The man, in his forties, has now been warned he could be jailed for persistent offending which occurred during the course of a month last year.
When he appeared at Carlisle Crown Court on Friday, the man pleaded guilty to one charge of cruelty to a person aged under 16. This stated that, having responsibility for the child, he engaged in criminal conduct in a manner likely to cause the youngster “unnecessary suffering.”
Court papers show the man had done this, during a period of several weeks, in a number of different ways: “By repeatedly striking him to the head and legs; threatening him; denigrating him; throwing clothes at him; and by shouting and swearing at him.”
The court was told these illegal acts were “all captured on CCTV”, and the defendant accepted what was shown.
Prosecutor Charles Brown told the court there were a total of 13 separate video clips, each lasting less than a minute.
Clare Thomas, defending, said the man had only one criminal conviction to his name. She asked that the case be adjourned for the preparation of a probation service pre-sentence report.
Recorder Katherine Pierpoint agreed, and directed the man should be sentenced at the crown court on August 6.
A one-hour sentencing hearing was listed.
In the meantime the man - who can’t be named to protect the identity of the child - was granted conditional bail by Recorder Pierpoint.
But the judge warned him the fact he was being bailed shouldn’t be taken as any indication of the likely sentence.
“All options will be open to the judge on the next occasion, including the imposition of a custodial sentence,” she said.
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