Holly Roe: Baby suffered 'fatal injuries from shaking'

Tiffany Tate denies all the charges against her

An eight-week-old baby suffered head and neck injuries consistent with being shaken before she died, a jury heard.

Holly Roe, who had been born two months prematurely, was pronounced dead at Tunbridge Wells Hospital in Pembury, Kent, on 10 September 2018.

Her parents Tiffany Tate, 22, and Michael Roe, 33, both deny murder and causing or allowing her death.

Lewes Crown Court was told Mr Roe rang 999 at 01:30 BST and said Holly was cold and unresponsive.

Paramedics arrived at their home in Crowborough, East Sussex, but the baby never regained consciousness, the jury was told.

The court was told a post-mortem examination showed Holly died from head injuries with damage to her brain, spinal cord and neck consistent with being shaken. She also had 12 rib fractures.

Opening the prosecution's case, Sally Howes QC told the jury they would hear evidence the rib fractures were most likely to have been excessive squeezing and, along with her head, neck and spinal injuries, were consistent with deliberate and violent shaking.

Jurors heard Michael Roe performed CPR on his daughter after calling emergency services

Holly would have been "extremely distressed" which would have been obvious to her carers, she told the court.

Some of these injuries were caused several days before she died and some in the hours before, suggesting multiple episodes of head injury at different times, Ms Howes said.

The court heard Ms Tate had told a health visitor she was struggling to bond with Holly and had not been visiting her daughter every day in the special care baby unit because she "didn't know what to say to her".

When Holly was taken home 27 days after her birth, the health visitor continued to visit and found the baby was putting on weight and her parents appeared to be coping but her mother said she was still struggling to bond, the court was told.

In police interviews read to the court, Ms Tate said a can of drink had fallen on her daughter's head while out shopping a few days before she died.

She also said she had seen Mr Roe trying to feed her through her nose a couple of weeks before her death and Holly has sounded in pain and was "proper screaming".

Ms Tate admitted saying she felt as though she wanted to throw Holly against a wall when she did not feed but denied ever shaking her.

The trial continues.

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