Over a year after the death of McKenzie Ellis in the hands of his father, he has received justice. Maidstone Crown Court found 21-year-old Lee Vernon guilty for the murder of his son. Medical reports, statements from Vernon, and victim impact statements were heard in court. Vernon was handed a life sentence with a minimum of 16 years behind bars.

Vernon had alerted emergency services claiming that McKenzie had become unresponsive for unknown reasons. EMS took McKenzie to a hospital in Margate on June 23, 2018. Doctors found the child has suffered multiple traumatic injuries. Later, McKenzie was moved to London's King's College Hospital. On June 26, McKenzie's family took him off life support.

Vernon initially claimed that he had no idea why the child was unresponsive. Later, he confessed that McKenzie had "slipped" from his arms and hit his head on the sofa before falling to the ground. The young father said that initially, he was scared to say that McKenzie was injured accidentally.

Bodycam Shows Ohio Police Officers Save Choking Baby's Life

Doctors rubbished Vernon's claims by revealing the damages sustained by McKenzie. Apart from cranial bleeding, McKenzie had a broken collar bone and eleven broken ribs. Once the murderer heard about the injuries the doctors revealed, he changed his story. Vernon then claimed that after the fall, the child became unresponsive. In a panic, Vernon claimed that he hugged and squeezed the child in an attempt to revive him.

BBC reported that some of the injuries suffered by the child were older. This means that the child was already in a lot of pain. This which would have caused the child immense suffering before his father's heinous act.

Katrina Ellis, McKenzie's mother, said in court that the death of her child made her hate Vernon. She hoped that Vernon would have been given a life sentence. Prosecutor Steven Perian called Vernon a "manipulative liar".

The court seemed to see through Vernon's inconsistent lies. Sky News reported that Vernon was found guilty of one count of murder and two counts of grievous bodily harm. For the murder, Vernon will be serving the life sentence he will simultaneously be serving six years for causing grievous bodily harm.