The father of a toddler who was brutally bashed by her own mother has called for tougher penalties for all child abusers.
When Evie McMahon was eight-months-old, she was left with black eyes and a swollen face after being beaten with a kitchen utensil by her mother in 2016.
Despite the severity of her attack, Lorien Norman, now 28, walked free from a South Australian court with only a good behaviour bond and $500 fine.
The father Evie McMahon (pictured) who was brutally bashed by her own mother has called for tougher penalties for all child abusers
Evie’s (pictured) mother Lorien Norman, now 28, walked free from a South Australian court with only a good behaviour bond and $500 fine
The sentence was far too light for Evie’s father, Shane McMahon, who as a result proposed a bill for harsher penalties for domestic violence perpetrators.
‘We drafted up a bill on the issue of child protection and domestic violence. We want a mandatory jail sentence for perpetrators,’ he told Adelaide Now.
His bill was ultimately knocked back, despite gaining the support of one South Australian politician, but Mr McMahon refused to back down.
‘The sentences in our country are so pathetic and lenient. They benefit the perpetrator,’ he said.
The sentence was far too light for Evie’s (pictured) father, Shane McMahon, who as a result proposed a bill for harsher penalties for domestic violence perpetrators
Mr McMahon’s bill was ultimately knocked back, despite gaining the support of one South Australian politician, but Mr McMahon refused to back down (Evie pictured)
The father believed the legal system was flawed in the way it seemed to benefit perpetrators instead of victims
‘The laws are absolutely shocking. So we lost the battle but we’re still going to fight the war.’
Weeks after celebrating her second birthday, Mr McMahon told Daily Mail Australia his little girl has turned a corner in her recovery and ‘come out of her shell’.
‘She’s beautiful, she’s absolutely fantastic. We are another year on from the horror and she’s just come out of her shell and into her own world,’ he said.
‘She’s a bundle of joy running around the place screaming and yelling. We’ve got a great relationship with her and her big sister’s taken her under her arm.
Evie McMahon (pictured) was left battered and bruised after a shocking attack at the hands of her mother Lorien Norman when she was just eight months old
Now, just weeks after the second birthday, young Evie’s smile has finally returned with her father Shane McMahon sharing pictures of his adorable daughter (above)
Norman, 28, walked free from an Adelaide court with only a good behaviour bond and $500 fine despite the severity of the attack on her eight-month-old daughter
‘We’re obviously still up in the air with the psychological assessment, because she’s too young to be assessed, but physically she’s fine.
Mr McMahon said young Evie, now aged two continues to be haunted by the attack and cringes whenever someone goes near her face but has physically recovered.
‘There are a few issues with her and she still cringes when things go near her face and she knows she’s been assaulted to some degree, but she’s just a beautiful little girl.’‘
Norman pleaded guilty to causing harm with intent after repeatedly beating Evie with a slotted spoon and her bare hand.
Although the offence carries a maximum sentence of 13 years, she did not spend a day behind bars and instead received a two-year good behaviour bond and was ordered to pay $500.
Adelaide District Court Judge Jack Costello told Norman if she followed Community Corrections orders and did not re-offend for two years, she would never see prison.
Mr McMahon is now planning to campaign for mandatory sentencing for attacks on children, outraged by the leniency given to Norman.
‘The laws are disgusting in Australia at the moment, so I’ve been working with some politicians to campaign for stricter mandatory sentencing,’ he said.
An online petition calling for Norman to face a retrial has gained more than 340,000 signatures.
Mr McMahon said young Evie (pictured), now aged two, continues to be haunted by the attack and cringes whenever someone goes near her face
‘We’re obviously still up in the air with the psychological assessment, because she’s too young to be assessed, but physically she’s fine,’ Mr McMahon said
Evie’s mother initially claimed the injuries had been caused by a fall at a local playground in Adelaide
Norman called police on October 1, 2016, and threatened to throw her daughter Evie off a balcony in Adelaide
A court heard Norman called police on October 1, 2016, and threatened to throw her daughter Evie off a balcony in Adelaide.
When officers arrived they found bruising to the girl’s face and took both mother and child to a hospital. Norman initially claimed the injuries had been caused by a fall at a local playground.
Pictures of Evie after the attack show the young girl sporting a black eye with a small cut and dark bruises on her face.
But Judge Costello found the injuries were ‘likely to resolve’ and let Norman walk free from court.
According to Mr McMahon, it won’t be until next year that the full toll of the attack on young Evie becomes clear when she is old enough to be psychologically assessed.
Pictures of Evie after the attack show the young girl sporting a black eye with a small cut and dark bruises on her face
The judge said Evie’s injuries were ‘likely to resolve’, when he allowed Norman to walk free
Mr McMahon (right) it won’t be until next year that the full toll of the attack on young Evie (left) becomes clear when she is old enough to be psychologically assessed
But in the meantime, she’s started going to playgroup and is preparing to go to pre-school next year, a step her father says will be monumental.
‘When kids go close to her or startle her she puts her hands up, and that is probably down to the fact she’s been through a lot of trauma,’ Mr McMahon said.
‘But other than that she’s absolutely fantastic. She’s talking heaps, started a playgroup and ready for pre-school. The normal things a girl who’s just turned two would do.
‘It’s common knowledge for children at that age who are involved in assaults it can have huge impacts on learning abilities.
‘I think all the time about how she’s going to be when she’s older and if and when she does see her mother too, I’m shit scared of the fact it will trigger something in her.
‘Being put back in front of an abuser, even that young, can trigger terrible memories and she’s just been through so much, but as you can see she’s doing OK – she’s my little angel.’
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