A toddler whose mother and her boyfriend are accused of murder and sexual assault had 21 broken bones in the weeks before her death, a court has heard. Two-year-old Isabelle Welsh collapsed at her home in Hartington Close, Thornaby, Teesside, after suffering a 'massive head injury' and could not be saved, the jury was told.
Defendants deny all charges
Her mother, Alexandra Walker, 25, and Harrison Simpson, 22, deny charges of murder, allowing the death of a child, sexual assault and child cruelty. They are on trial at Teesside Crown Court. The pair became a couple the previous summer, and Simpson became a frequent visitor, spending 'a lot of time' with Isabelle, the jury heard.
On September 13, Walker called 999 after her daughter collapsed. Paramedics found Isabelle at the bottom of the stairs, pulseless and critically ill. Prosecutor Richard Wright KC said she was covered in bruises, particularly on her head, neck, abdomen, back and private parts. Her nappy contained blood and she had vomit on her face.
Injuries and medical history
Isabelle was rushed to hospital but died in the early hours of September 14. The prosecution said she had been violently shaken, her spine over-extended, and her head struck against a hard surface. Mr Wright said: 'For weeks this child had been violently assaulted and her death, by that terrible head injury, was simply the end point in that campaign of violence to which she had been subjected.'
The prosecution argued that both Walker and Simpson had 'ample opportunity' to harm the toddler and, in a small two-bedroom house, 'each must have been aware of the abuse'. Eleven days before her death, Walker took Isabelle to a GP and hospital after her leg was found to be fractured. Despite medics' concerns, Isabelle was discharged back to her mother's care.
Delayed medical assistance
A post-mortem examination revealed 21 bone fractures and 'bruising the result of forceful gripping', Mr Wright said. The prosecution claimed Walker waited two weeks before reporting the fractured leg. Mr Wright said: 'When Isabelle was gravely unwell in the week before she died no medical assistance was sought, and even on the day she died, after her heart had stopped and she appeared to all intents and purposes to be dead, Alexandra Walker only called an ambulance when her stepfather told her to, long after she must have known her daughter was critically ill.'
He added: 'All of this, we will invite you to conclude, was not because of panic about Isabelle, or a failure to appreciate how ill she was. To the contrary, Alexandra Walker and Harrison Simpson each plainly knew how ill she was, they knew that because they had caused her injuries and their failure to summon help from doctors and finally the emergency services, was an act of self-preservation.'
Relationship and evidence
Mr Wright said the pair had an 'unhealthy' relationship involving alcohol and drugs, leading to deteriorating care for Isabelle and escalating to 'regular violence at home'. CCTV footage from two cameras fitted at Walker's home was presented as evidence. An early text from Walker to Simpson claimed she was the main carer for her daughter and completing her final year studying forensics. The trial continues.
