A YOUNG Brierley Hill mum who left her three-month-old son with two bleeds on the brain after she violently shook him has been spared jail.

The mother, who was 19 at the time, snapped because the child would not feed properly - Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.

Gurdeep Garcha, defending, said: "She became frustrated and she harmed the child she loved and cherished. She shook the child for just a few moments."

He said the woman, now 22, had effectively been a single parent with no support from the child's father who was serving a two-year prison sentence for stabbing the mother.

The court was told the pair had been in a difficult relationship and Mr Garcha added: "When the child was not feeding well she snapped."

Paul Spratt, prosecuting, said the mother - who cannot be named because it would identify the child - had grabbed the baby under his arms when he was "scratchy and irritable".

He told the court she shook him with some force for a short time and then "riddled with guilt" she put the baby down but later when he appeared to be ill and unresponsive she quickly contacted the emergency services.

The baby was taken to hospital where doctors carried out a scan that revealed two bleeds on the brain and a bleed behind one eye.

Mr Spratt said they were the result of the tot being shaken although there were no other visible signs of injury.

The mother then told a string of lies before confessing what had really happened, the court was told.

Judge Kristina Montgomery QC said the woman she had been in a position where the baby would not feed and - unlike most mothers who treated the situation with compassion and patience - she had reacted.

She said the youngster's diagnosis at hospital depended on her being truthful and by lying she "had stood in the way of that".

After admitting one charge of cruelty - the mother was given an 18-month jail term suspended for two years, coupled with two years supervision.

The court heard the boy was now living with foster parents and his injuries appeared to have been resolved; there was no suggestion he would face problems in the future as a result of the incident.

Mr Garcha said the woman had been devoted to her son and that made her offending "all the more unfathomable".

The court was told she was now having monthly visits to her child and it was hoped the day would arrive when she would be able to once again have a full relationship with her son.

Mr Garcha added: "What she did has done her no credit. She knows she needs support and rehabilitation to ensure the mistake she made 18 months ago will not happen again."