Mum and stepdad left daughter, 5, in cold bath as 'tortuous punishment for misbehaviour' leaving her 'just minutes from death'

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

A five-year-old girl was forced to lie in a bath full of cold water by her mum and stepdad for 'between one to three hours' as a 'punishment for misbehaviour' a judge described as 'extreme, calculated and tortuous' - leaving her just 'minutes from death', a court heard.

A paediatric consultant said she had never seen a patient with a core temperature as low as 25C who had survived, saying her condition was 'more consistent with someone who had fallen into the North Sea'.

Paramedics found the girl sat on a couch at her home with her eyes open but unresponsive. She was blue and frothing at the mouth, the court heard.

She suffered a seizure at hospital and her body was warmed with a special machine to increase her core temperature. The judge at Leeds Crown Court, however, said she now 'appears to be thriving' living with her biological dad, reports Yorkshire Live.