Taliqa Fields baby death: Louis Burdett found guilty
A 22-year-old man has been found guilty of the murder of a 10-month-old girl.
Louis Burdett, of Aikman Avenue, Leicester, was sentenced to life imprisonment at Leicester Crown Court on Thursday. He is to serve a minimum of 13 years.
Taliqa Fields was taken to the Leicester Royal Infirmary with serious injuries following an incident at her home in 2011. She died the next day.
Mr Burdett was the partner of Taliqa's mother at the time of the incident.
Det Supt Steve Craddock said: "This has been a tremendously difficult time for the family of Taliqa and I would like to praise them for the courage and dignity they have shown throughout the trial.
"What Burdett did to Taliqa is incomprehensible. She was a defenceless child with her whole life ahead of her and this was taken away."
Speaking after the verdict, the parents of Taliqa, Zoe and Jason, said: "We are absolutely devastated by what has happened to our daughter.
"Every day is incredibly hard to get through... some days we struggle to even get out of bed. We feel lost.
"In her short life Taliqa brought so much happiness to us. She was a lovely girl who loved dancing and was always happy and smiling. We have so many fond memories of her."