“Mother told me that on Thursday evening of last week [N] was a bit unsettled. She gave him some Calpol before putting him to bed. On Friday morning mother took [N] and [K] to a Play Centre with some friends and he seemed fine. On Friday afternoon mother was getting [N] ready and putting him into the car seat ready to go and pick up his brother, [L], from school. He then had a fit with shaking of all four limbs and he became unresponsive. This lasted for 2-3 minutes. Mother called an ambulance; it took about an hour and a half for the ambulance to come by which time [N] was recovering. They were taken to X Hospital where he was assessed in A & E and then transferred to the ward for a while. Mother said that when he arrived in A & E he did have a fever. Mother says she spent some time with [N] in the A & E Department and then went to the ward. At 11.00 p.m. on the Friday [N] was discharged with a diagnosis of a febrile convulsion due to viral tonsillitis. Mother said that on Saturday he was still ‘a bit off’, so not quite back to his normal self, but by Sunday he was back to normal. On Monday and Tuesday he appeared well and on Tuesday he was eating and drinking normally. Mother says she gave the boys their tea and then went out to work at about 5.30 p.m.. Father said he did his normal routine which included bathing [N] and putting on his pyjamas. He then put [N] in the top bunkbed in the children's bedroom along with his three year old brother, [K]. Father said that his seven year old brother, [L], was in the same room on his laptop. Father said that he left [N] at the pillow end of the top bunk. The ladder is at the other end, which is the only gap in the railings. [N] was on his back .. playing with a balloon when father went outside. Father went onto the landing to sort out the children's clothes and do some ironing. Father said the next thing he heard was a thud and went in and found [N] on the floor. His head was next to the ladder of the bunk bed. Initially [N] cried. Father picked him up and then he went floppy. Father said he noticed some blood in his mouth. He then decided to take [N] downstairs so that he was away from the other two children. Father says he put [N] on his side as he had been advised to do this after he had the febrile convulsion. Father then called the ambulance and was advised to put him on his back and to do CPR. Father said he was concerned that there was a lot of blood in [N’s] mouth so he did not do any breaths for him. He was advised to start chest compressions and was about to do this as the ambulance arrived. Father said that [N] had been very well and happy in his bath earlier that evening. Father had sent a photo to mother from his phone showing [N] looking happy. [N] was born at term by normal delivery. Apart from this attendance at X Hospital for the febrile convulsion he is previously fit and well. Developmentally he is crawling and rolling. His two older brothers are fit and healthy. There is no family history of any bleeding problems as far as parents are aware.”
“Subdural haemorrhage means bleeding into the potential space between the thin arachnoid membrane which intimately covers the brain and the thicker dural membrane which lies between the brain and the skull. Subdural bleeding is most commonly the result of head trauma and can occur after accidental injury. In the absence of a history of a significant accident this pattern of bleeding raises the suspicion of a non-accidental head injury such as shaking or shaking and impact injury. Biomechanical modelling suggests rotational forces such as those generated by shaking with or without impact are important factors in causing subdural bleeding. The bleeding is described as acute which means recent. There was no bruising or swelling evident to [N’s] head. There was no evidence of any skull fracture on the CT scan. [N] was also found to have extensive swelling to his brain. During an episode of shaking damage to the brain itself which can occur via shearing and tearing forces through the brain. This causes secondary damage and swelling. [N] was also found to have extensive bilateral retinal haemorrhages. This means bleeding at the back of both eyes. Retinal haemorrhages occur in 70-80% of infants who have suffered subdural bleeding caused by shaking. Retinal haemorrhages can occur following severe accidental injury but again are strongly associated with inflicted head injury, particularly when they are extensive as described in [N]'s case. Miss A also described that [N] had perimacular folds in both his eyes. This is when there has been more extensive force to the back of the eye so that the retina is torn and this suggests significant major trauma.”
“It is my opinion that [N’s] injuries are not consistent with a fall, even a fall from a significant height. It seems that developmentally it would be possible for [N] to have crawled to the ladder of the bunk bed and fallen out. However, from a fall from a height I would expect signs of some external injury such as bruises, swellings or skull fracture. I would not expect such a devastating brain injury or such widespread subdural bleeding or retinal haemorrhages from such a fall. As discussed above, [N’s] injuries are highly suggestive of a nonaccidental shaking injury.”
“Has there been anything recently that has made you unhappy?”
“I heard something happened to [N]? and he replied that [N] had “fell off the bed.”
“I then asked him if he had seen this happen. …he was also able to tell me that he did not see N fall because he was playing on his laptop at the time. His laptop was on his table and his eyes were looking at this at that time. [L] was also able to tell me that dad was downstairs at the time, and K was on the bunkbed with N. he was alerted to the fall of N by the fact he heard a big bang.”
“evidence cannot be evaluated and assessed in separate compartments. A judge in these difficult cases must have regard to the relevance of each piece of evidence to the other evidence and to exercises an overview of the totality of the evidence in order to come to the conclusion of whether the case put forward by the Local Authority has been made out to the appropriate standard of proof.”
“Cases involving an allegation of shaking are, inevitably, and necessarily, multi-disciplinary in their approach. It is therefore crucial that each expert keeps within the bounds of their own expertise and works in a collaborative way with the other experts in order to see if a diagnosis/cause can be reached. This means that each expert must defer to the expertise of others more qualified to comment on certain areas such deferral must be made not grudgingly or reluctantly, but in ready acknowledgment of the greater expertise and knowledge that the other specialists may have in relation to certain aspects of the case.”
“the expert advises but the judge decides. The judge decides on the evidence… there is, however, no rule that the judge suspends judicial belief simply because the evidence is given by an expert.”
“The moral which I draw from this case and will never forget is that a hypothesis in relation to the causation of a child's injuries must not be dismissed only because such causation would be highly unusual and that, where his history contains a demonstrably rare feature, the possible nexus between that feature and his injuries must be the subject of specialist appraisal at an early stage.”
“9.1 The expert's report shall be addressed to the court and prepared and filed in accordance with the court's timetable and must –(f) in expressing an opinion to the court – (ii) describe the expert's own professional risk assessment process and process of differential diagnosis, highlighting factual assumptions, deductions from the factual assumptions, and any unusual, contradictory or inconsistent features of the case;(iii) indicate whether any proposition in the report is an hypothesis (in particular a controversial hypothesis), or an opinion deduced in accordance with peer-reviewed and tested technique, research and experience accepted as a consensus in the scientific community; (iv) indicate whether the opinion is provisional (or qualified, as the case may be), stating the qualification and the reason for it, and identifying what further information is required to give an opinion without qualification; (g) where there is a range of opinion on any question to be answered by the expert – (i) summarise the range of opinion; (ii) identify and explain, within the range of opinions, any 'unknown cause', whether arising from the facts of the case (for example, because there is too little information to form a scientific opinion) or from limited experience or lack of research, peer review or support in the relevant field of expertise; (iii) give reasons for any opinion expressed: the use of a balance sheet approach to the factors that support or undermine an opinion can be of great assistance to the court;” (ii) describe the expert's own professional risk assessment process and process of differential diagnosis, highlighting factual assumptions, deductions from the factual assumptions, and any unusual, contradictory or inconsistent features of the case;(iii) indicate whether any proposition in the report is an hypothesis (in particular a controversial hypothesis), or an opinion deduced in accordance with peer-reviewed and tested technique, research and experience accepted as a consensus in the scientific community; (iv) indicate whether the opinion is provisional (or qualified, as the case may be), stating the qualification and the reason for it, and identifying what further information is required to give an opinion without qualification; (g) where there is a range of opinion on any question to be answered by the expert – (i) summarise the range of opinion; (ii) identify and explain, within the range of opinions, any 'unknown cause', whether arising from the facts of the case (for example, because there is too little information to form a scientific opinion) or from limited experience or lack of research, peer review or support in the relevant field of expertise; (iii) give reasons for any opinion expressed: the use of a balance sheet approach to the factors that support or undermine an opinion can be of great assistance to the court;”
“[1] There are few types of case which arouse greater anxiety and controversy than those in which it is alleged that a baby has died as a result of being shaken. It is of note that when the Attorney-General undertook a review of 297 cases over a 10-year period following the case of R v Cannings[2004] EWCACrim1,[2004] 1WLR2607 , 97 were cases of what is known as 'shaken baby syndrome'. The controversy to which such cases gives rise should come as no surprise. A young baby dies whilst under the sole care of a parent or childminder. That child can give no clue to clinicians as to what has happened. Experts, prosecuting authorities and juries must reconstruct as best they can what has happened. There remains a temptation to believe that it is always possible to identify the cause of injury to a child. Where the prosecution is able, by advancing an array of experts, to identify a non-accidental injury and the defence can identify no alternative cause, it is tempting to conclude that the prosecution has proved its case. Such a temptation must be resisted. In this, as in so many fields of medicine, the evidence may be insufficient to exclude, beyond reasonable doubt, an unknown cause. As R v Cannings, para [177] teaches, even where on examination of all the evidence, every possible known cause has been excluded, the cause may still remain unknown. [2] This court has heard, over a period of 3 weeks, three appeals concerning three babies, two of whom died, whilst in the care of a single adult. During the course of the trials a large number of medical experts were called. In two of the appeals what was asserted to be 'fresh' medical expert evidence was called. These three cases highlight a particular feature of cases where it is alleged a baby has been shaken in the care of a single adult. The evidence to prove guilt may consist only of expert evidence. It must never be forgotten that that expert evidence is relied upon to prove that the individual defendant is lying in the account he gives, either at the time or at trial. The correct management of such evidence is, therefore, of crucial importance in cases such as these. The correct approach to such evidence must be identified. If a conviction is to be based merely on the evidence of experts then that conviction can only be regarded as safe if the case proceeds on a logically justifiable basis. That entails a logically justifiable basis for accepting or rejecting the expert evidence (see R v Kai-Whitewind[2005] EWCA Civ 1092 , [2006] Crim LR 349, para [90]). Hearing these three appeals in succession affords an opportunity to make observations on the correct approach and the management of such expert evidence.”
“ In my judgment, a conclusion of unknown aetiology in respect of an infant represents neither professional nor forensic failure. It simply recognises that we still have much to learn and it also recognises that it is dangerous and wrong to infer non-accidental injury merely from the absence of any other understood mechanism. Maybe it simply represents a general acknowledgement that we are fearfully and wonderfully made’.”
“Seventh, the evidence of the parents and any other carers is of the utmost importance. It is essential that the court forms a clear assessment of their credibility and reliability. They must have the fullest opportunity to take part in the hearing and the court is likely to place considerable weight on the evidence and the impression it forms of them (see Re W and another (Non- accidental injury) [2003] FCR 346).”
“If a court concludes that a witness has lied about a matter it does not follow that he has lied about everything. A witness may lie for many reasons for example how to shame, humiliation, misplaced loyalty, panic, fear, distress, confusion and emotional pressure.”
“6. The burden of proving a fact rests on the person who asserts it. 7. The standard of proof is the balance of probabilities: Is it more likely than not that the event occurred? Neither the seriousness of the allegation, nor the seriousness of the consequences, nor the inherent probabilities alters this. (1). Where an allegation is a serious one, there is no requirement that the evidence must be of a special quality. The court will consider grave allegations with proper care, but evidence is evidence and the approach to analysing it remains the same in every case. In my view, statements of principle (some relied on in this case) that suggest that an enhanced level of evidential cogency or clarity is required in order to prove a very serious allegation do not assist and may lead a fact-finder into error. Despite all disclaimers, reference to qualitative concepts such as cogency and clarity may wrongly be taken to imply that some elevated standard of proof is called for. (2). Nor does the seriousness of the consequences of a finding of fact affect the standard to which it must be proved. Whether a man was in a London street at a particular time might be of no great consequence if the issue is whether he was rightly issued with a parking ticket, but it might be of huge consequence if he has been charged with a murder that occurred that day in Paris. The evidential standard to which his presence in the street must be proved is nonetheless the same. (3). The court takes account of any inherent probability or improbability of an event having occurred as part of a natural process of reasoning. But the fact that an event is a very common one does not lower the standard of probability to which it must be proved. Nor does the fact that an event is very uncommon raise the standard of proof that must be satisfied before it can be said to have occurred. (4). Similarly, the frequency or infrequency with which an event generally occurs cannot divert attention from the question of whether it actually occurred. As Mr Rowley QC and Ms Bannon felicitously observe: "Improbable events occur all the time. Probability itself is a weak prognosticator of occurrence in any given case. Unlikely, even highly unlikely things, do happen. Somebody wins the lottery most weeks; children are struck by lightning. The individual probability of any given person enjoying or suffering either fate is extremely low." I agree. It is exceptionally unusual for a baby to sustain so many fractures, but this baby did. The inherent improbability of a devoted parent inflicting such widespread, serious injuries is high, but then so is the inherent improbability of this being the first example of an as yet undiscovered medical condition. Clearly, in this and every case, the answer is not to be found in the inherent probabilities but in the evidence, and it is when analysing the evidence that the court takes account of the probabilities. 8. Each piece of evidence must be considered in the context of the whole. The medical evidence is important, and the court must assess it carefully, but it is not the only evidence. The evidence of the parents is of the utmost importance and the court must form a clear view of their reliability and credibility. 9. When assessing alternative possible explanations for a medical finding, the court will consider each possibility on its merits. There is no hierarchy of possibilities to be taken in sequence as part of a process of elimination. If there are three possibilities, possibility C is not proved merely because possibilities A and B are unlikely, nor because C is less unlikely than A and/or B. Possibility C is only proved if, on consideration of all the evidence, it is more likely than not to be the true explanation for the medical findings. So, in a case of this kind, the court will not conclude that an injury has been inflicted merely because known or unknown medical conditions are improbable: that conclusion will only be reached if the entire evidence shows that inflicted injury is more likely than not to be the explanation for the medical findings. 10. Lastly, where there is a genuine dispute about the origin of a medical finding, the court should not assume that it is always possible to know the answer. It should give due consideration to the possibility that the cause is unknown or that the doctors have missed something or that the medical finding is the result of a condition that has not yet been discovered. These possibilities must be held in mind to whatever extent is appropriate in the individual case.”
“70. My Lords, for that reason I would go further and announce loud and clear that the standard of proof in finding the facts necessary to establish the threshold under section 31(2) or the welfare considerations in section 1 of the 1989 Act is the simple balance of probabilities, neither more nor less. Neither the seriousness of the allegation nor the seriousness of the consequences should make any difference to the standard of proof to be applied in determining the facts. The inherent probabilities are simply something to be taken into account, where relevant, in deciding where the truth lies… 72. As to the seriousness of the allegation, there is no logical or necessary connection between seriousness and probability. Some seriously harmful behaviour, such as murder, is sufficiently rare to be inherently improbable in most circumstances. Even then there are circumstances, such as a body with its throat cut and no weapon to hand, where it is not at all improbable. Other seriously harmful behaviour, such as alcohol or drug abuse, is regrettably all too common and not at all improbable. Nor are serious allegations made in a vacuum. Consider the famous example of the animal seen in Regent's Park. If it is seen outside the zoo on a stretch of greensward regularly used for walking dogs, then of course it is more likely to be a dog than a lion. If it is seen in the zoo next to the lions' enclosure when the door is open, then it may well be more likely to be a lion than a dog.”
“The eye pathology findings in this case can be summarised as showing severe, bilateral, numerous, multilayered retinal haemorrhages, associated with bilateral optic sheath haemorrhage. Haemorrhagic subILM macular cysts/retinoschisis cavities contained within ring-like retinal folds are present at the posterior poles of both eyes associated with focal sub-retinal haemorrhage. Haemorrhage at the optic nerve/scleral junction is also seen bilaterally.”
“In conclusion, from a scientific/statistical perspective an exercise in judging whether an explanation should be favoured or discounted on balance of probability relying on previously creditable and reliable pathological evidence might become meaningless if other potentially contradictory novel variables/additional non-pathological information of a reliable nature (if accepted by investigators and the Court as such) is introduced in addition to the pathological evidence. To put it another way, if we as clinicians and pathologists regard our findings as near incontrovertible to incontrovertible evidence of a non-accidental event based on sound prior shared and agreed experience such a position nevertheless needs to be reconsidered when supplemented by additional evidence seriously challenging such a position. For example, if CCTV imaging is obtained confirming an accidental injury event previously regarded as implausible, the whole equation changes – to insist that a nonaccidental injury event remains on balance the most likely explanation might still be valid as a general rule, but becomes untenable in the particular case under scrutiny. Should the relevant circumstantial evidence obtained in this case prove credible to any Court I would have to accept that father’s account is true. The specifics of the accidental scenario under consideration in this case might further be an exceptional explanation for the fatal outcome and full injury profile obtained, but in my opinion such specifics (height and possible manner of fall and impact) introduces a reasonable prospect of causing a fatal head injury, allowing me to reconcile the account provided with the tragic fatal outcome.”
“If [N] was reaching up to grab the balloon tethered to the railing, the level of his head above the ground may well have exceeded 5 or even 6 feet (his crown-heel height was 2.5 feet). He could further have toppled over the railing, introducing a rotational/angular component to the momentum of his fall. Were his forehead to have struck the floor first (an entirely plausible proposition given the height involved which would have permitted a headlong plunge downwards with the whole of [N’s] bodyweight kg of over 10 kg bearing down on the impact site) substantial force may have been applied to the head on impact. Such a fall could have accounted for a skull fracture (which cannot be dismissed in this case given Dr Lumb’s post mortem observations), an independent form of verification of substantial force exerted on the head and therefore on the brain. Such an impact could further have caused considerable and sudden whiplash related strain on the upper neck/lower brainstem.”
“Apart from static/crush-related head injuries, nearly all other head injuries involve some component of acceleration/deceleration force, with a subset involving rotational or angular movement in the process. The distinctive injury profile observed in this case (involving the eyes, brain and spine) most likely relates to a particular form of angular acceleration/deceleration, namely one involving oscillatory movement with at least an initial crescendo/amplifying rather than dampening effect (such as may be caused by forceful shaking, but also any other oscillatory movement with rapid and forceful reversal of head acceleration, a possibility which could also exist with a head impact resulting in a forceful toand-fro whiplash-type movement of the head due to rebound phenomena.”
“The differential diagnosis of such a pattern of bleeding within and around the eyes with retinal folding is essentially restricted to abusive trauma, high energy impact trauma (e.g. a road traffic accident, fall from significant height), severe crush head injury or Terson syndrome (catastrophic intracranial haemorrhage associated with ocular haemorrhages in the context of sudden rupture of a large calibre intracranial aneurysm or intracranial arteriovenous malformation). Birth related head injury is not a credible explanation for the recent haemorrhages present. Bilateral, multi-layered confluent retinal haemorrhages may rarely occur in the context of severe (high energy) accidental trauma but the retinal haemorrhages in such a context, when present, are much more often said to be unilateral, localised to the posterior pole and few in number (Maguire et al, 2013 Eye; 27; 28-36 – systematic literature review). This latter pattern is not the pattern of retinal bleeding seen in this case. According to Binenbaum and Forbes (Paediatr. Radiol. 2014; 44:S571-77), the incidence of retinal haemorrhages in accidental injury is less than 4% and in most studies the incidence is zero, especially when due to short falls. Typically, the history provided is that of an unambiguous high energy incident such as motor vehicle incident or very high level fall with other injuries matching the traumatic mechanism. Binenbaum and Forbes state that the retinal haemorrhages found in such accidents are confined to the posterior pole, few in number and are rarely subretinal.”
“In my opinion, on the balance of probability, the type and distribution of brain injuries seen on N’s scan, and at post-mortem, were consistent with a shaking mechanism, with or without impact. However, an impact trauma, following a fall from the top bunk of a bunk bed cannot be entirely ruled out as an unlikely, but possible, explanation for the injuries. There is no evidence of any organic cause for the injuries seen.”
“Shaking trauma, with or without a degree of impact, resulting in rapid forwards and backwards movement of the head and spine, is a possible mechanism for the combination of injuries seen. As an infant’s head is unsupported and large, relative to their body, the head moves rapidly from the extremes of range, forwards and backwards. Veins bridging the subdural spaces and subarachnoid spaces may then rupture resulting in widespread, multicompartmental, acute subdural and subarachnoid bleeding. Rapid, forceful, movement of the spine and limbs, during shaking could cause damage to the nerve roots with evidence of bleeding and damage to the nerve tissue as seen in N. The act of shaking would require the perpetrator to grasp the infant around the chest. Bruising might be expected to occur at the points where the infant was held. There was no evidence of bruising to N’s body recorded. None the less shaking remains a likely mechanism to cause the combination of injuries seen.”
“On Tuesday25th June 2019 I was at work between 7am and 4.30pm. [M] sent me a video via snap chat of [N] and [K] at 13.50. [N] had just woken up and had some food. [M] had already given the boys their tea when I got home. We had a quick chat about our days before [M] went to get ready for work. [M] left to go to work at 5.30pm. [L] was in his bedroom. [K] was playing with his toys… [N] was moving around in his walker between the kitchen and living room while I was cooking and eating my tea and popping between the two rooms keeping an eye on [N] and [K]. [L] remained upstairs with [N] and [K] with me downstairs. I watched a bit of television and gave [N] a baby snack he likes. I washed and sterilized [N’s] bottles and it was then bath time. By this time bath and bedtime routine had changed a little. [M] had been back at work for about 2 weeks. It was more difficult to try and bath all 3 boys at the same time and so I tended to bath [N] only on the nights [M] was at work. We then bathed all 3 boys together when we were both home and [M] was not working. I got [N] in the bath at roughly 7.10pm. I know this as I took a photo of [N] in the bath and sent this to [M] at 19.14 via snap chat. It was [M’s] birthday and so I sent her a picture saying ‘happy birthday mummy’. While [N] was in the bath [L] and [K] were in their bedroom. [N] was in the bath for about 10 minutes. I washed his hair and body and then got him out and took him into our bedroom and got him ready for bed on our bed. I then picked [N] up and took him to the boys bedroom to ask [L] to put his pyjamas on while I got [K] ready for bed. I put [N] on the top bunkbed at the pillow end and gave him a dinosaur balloon of [K’s] to play with while I did this. [N] had done this before and liked to play with the balloon. After he put his pyjamas on [L] was sat at his desk playing a game on his lap top... After I had put [K’s] pyjamas on he climbed on to the top bunk bed with [N]. I then started to get the boys clothes ready for the next day like I usually did. First I got [L] and [K’s] clothes from their wardrobes and ironed them. The ironing board was set up on the landing. The door to the boys bedroom was open and I could see into the room so I could keep an eye on them. After the clothes were ironed I would hang them on the bannister on the landing. While I was doing this I was popping in and out of the bedroom and checking on the boys. At one point I heard [K] take the balloon off [N] and so I went in and tied the balloon to the bed near [N] so [K] could not take it off him. [N] was hitting the balloon and laughing. I saw [L] get up a couple of times and climb up on to the top of the bunk bed to kiss [N] before getting down. I think I saw him do this at least 2 times. I then briefly popped into [N’s] room to get his clothes to iron them. While I was on the landing I then heard a thud. I would say that the scenario of getting the boys pyjamas on and getting the clothes ready for the next day was going on for about 15 minutes at this point. When I heard the thud I immediately went into the boys bedroom. I saw [N] on the floor on his front facing the ladder of the bunk bed. He had his arms at his side and was lifting his head up. He was crying. I know that you should not pick babies up if you don’t know the injuries as it could make them worse but my instinct was to pick him up which I did straightaway. I held him under his arms facing me so I could look at him. I saw blood on his mouth and then his eyes started to roll back, his head lolled back and he went floppy. I was worried he was going to have another fit. The hospital had told us if he did we should lie him on his side. I told the boys to stay in their room and took [N] straight downstairs holding [N’s] body against my chest. I cannot remember if I supported his head or not. I put [N] on the living room rug on his side. I saw blood in his mouth and he was struggling to breath at this point. I therefore rang 999 and asked for an ambulance. I think that this was at about 7.40pm. From this point I stayed on the phone to the 999 operator. I remember that she was asking for lots of details such as [N’s] date of birth and all I wanted was an ambulance to come. At some point I think the boys had come downstairs as I remember they were there when the ambulance arrived… I have read in the papers that it is said I asked [K] if he had pushed [N]. I do not remember asking this or thinking this.”
“O: I don’t envy you having to go to things like this. Its like we take it on the phone and that’s bad enough sometimes KB: I mean they are few and far between, thankfully O: But when you do get them they are quite harrowing aren’t they? KB: yes. It’s not nice, its not nice. O: It never is. OK so two other children in the house. KB: there were. Dad said… basically Mum had been at work, she worked in a shop somewhere not far away, but she was at work. F was minding the children and he was bathing the other 2. And I think he’s gone to get the child out, one of the child, er, children out of the bath and he’s put [N] on the top bunk. I don’t know why, but he’s put [N] on the top bunk. I don't know whether [N] was asleep or whether he was awake, I’m not sure, because we couldn’t really get like a proper, he was too distraught dad, to sort of get much out of him so I don’t know whether he’s asleep or he’s awake when he’s put on the top bunk. But he’s gone to get the other child out of the bath and then he’s come back in. I don't know if he’s heard him fall or whether he’s gone in and found him on the floor. I’m not sure. O: Ok so he was bathing the other two children KB: Yes O: and placed [N] on the top of the bunk bed KB: Yes O: to go and get another child out of the bath KB: Yes, something like that. He was getting, the child, a child, I don’t know, I’m not sure, a child out the bath, erm and when he’s come back in, [N] was on the floor. Like I said I don’t know if he’s heard him fall or just gone in and found him, I don’t know.”
“DC PD: Did you consider that he could have— F: [Inaudible 01:11:44] like— DC PD: —moved off that top bunk? F: I did, er, to be honest, I didn’t… I didn’t think he could be, get out that little gap. Everywhere else is surrounded, do you know what I mean? I-I don’t know… [sighs] obviously it’s stupid to put him up there n-now that it’s happened but… it’s too late, init? But— DC PD: I think what I’m asking you is— F: [Sighs] DC PD: —is it something that you considered and then you just, you just said to me then that, well, you didn’t think he could get out. Did you actually, at the time— F: I didn’t think he was gonna fall, no, I didn’t, I didn’t… I didn’t think about him falling out, no. DC PD: Right. F: Er, like, [inaudible 01:12:17]… I should’ve given him his bottle first, to be honest, but… what’s done is done, innit? DC PD: Is it something that you’ve done before? F: Play with the balloon with him? Yeah. DC PD: Put him on the top bunk there? F: Yeah. DC PD: And it’s something you’ve done before where you’ve put him on the top bunk and then left the room for— F: [Inaudible 01:12:32] well, just while I, while I’ve ironed, yeah. DC PD: Okay. How often have you done that? F: Er, I’d say, er, once, just once before. (my emphasis) DC PD: Right.”
“DC PD: And on any of the occasions, sorry, how many times have you done it before? F: Just once. DC PD: Once before? F: [Inaudible 01:12:50]. DC PD: When you say just once, that one time or one previous occasion? F: Well, and the one, er, yeah, that time and then the one before that. DC PD: And on the previous occasion— F: L would have been there, yeah.”
“Dad has put N on top of the bunk bed before”
“[L] would have been there”
“Dad has put N on top of the bunk bed before”
“How was Dad before [N] fell?”
“DS VW: Okay, how did she come to find out about the baby being unwell? F: I rang her after… the paramedics took, er, took the baby and shut the door. I rang her then— DS VW: So you rang her? F: —and then she’s, she just left work straight away and got home. DS VW: Right. Tell me about that conversation. F: Er, [pause] I was, like, “[M], [N’s] fell off, I’ve put him on the double bed,”