Andrew William Campbell pleads guilty to manslaughter of baby Dexter after child left to die during days-long drug binge

A man has admitted to causing the death of an eight-month-old baby who was left to die after he and the child’s mother “forgot” about him while on a days-long drug bender. Andrew William Campbell was due to stand trial in the Supreme Court in Brisbane over the manslaughter of baby Dexter in 2019. The child died of “severe” neglect after Campbell and his then-partner Natalie Jade Whitehead “forgot” about Dexter while consuming drugs for days, as he was deprived of his basic needs. During his arraignment on Monday, Campbell pleaded guilty to the charge of manslaughter. A charge of misconduct with a corpse was dropped by the prosecution. Campbell also pleaded guilty to charges of failing to supply the necessaries of life and negligent act causing harm. His defence team requested a further mention to organise psychological material to tender during their client’s sentencing. The matter was adjourned to March 26 and Campbell’s bail was continued. He did not comment outside court and fled from waiting media. The plea follows Whitehead receiving a head sentence of nine years’ jail in October last year after pleading guilty to Dexter’s manslaughter. The court was told Whitehead, Campbell and Dexter lived at a unit in Ipswich at the time of the offending. The pair spent “days” consuming drugs before Dexter’s death, with Whitehead telling police she put her child to sleep the night before June 21, 2019, with a heater running and the door closed. Dexter suffered “severe neglect” of food and fluids and the hours preceding his death would have been “physically and emotionally” distressing, the court was told. “(Whitehead) chose to nourish her drug habit over her infant children,” Crown prosecutor Matt Le Grand said. With time already served, Whitehead will be eligible for parole in June this year. Domestic Violence helplines