Child's injuries 'like from a road crash or assault'

Pathologist tells court of 'unusual bruising in stepmum murder trial

- BY EOIN REYNOLDS

A CHILD who had suffered "extensive and unusual" bruising died from injuries associated with road traffic collisions or trauma from an assault, a pathologist has told the Central Criminal Court.

Dr Heidi Okkers told Anne Rowland SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, she was aware the child had been brought to hospital on March 13, 2021 with suspected non-accidental injuries.

The most severe were to the head and a laceration to the liver while there were "extensive and unusual" bruises to the child's face, back, chest, arms and legs.

The child was unresponsive when brought to hospital. He underwent neurosurgery but his condition did not improve so he was taken to Temple Street Hospital in Dublin where he was placed on life support until March 16.

Doctors told the family that the boy was not going to recover and they agreed to withdraw life support.

The child's stepmother, a woman in her 30s from the southwest of the country, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the boy's manslaughter in March 2021.