Three years on, murder accused says she’s still ‘unsure’ who killed Santina
A WOMAN accused of the murder of a two-year-old girl claimed in direct evidence at her trial yesterday that she did not kill the toddler and was ‘unsure’ as to who was responsible for the crime, in spite of considering the issue for the last three years.
Karen Harrington, 37, is on trial at the Central Criminal Court in Cork city charged with the murder of Santina Cawley.
The youngster was found critically injured on the morning of July 5, 2019 at the then home of Ms Harrington at Elderwood Park in Boreenmanna Road in Cork.
Ms Harrington, of Lakelands Crescent in Mahon in Cork, was in a relationship with Michael Cawley, the father of the child, at the time of the alleged offence.
Santina died in the arms of her mother at Cork University Hospital at 9.20am on July 5 at Cork University Hospital.
Santina had sustained 53 injuries including fractures to her skull, arm, leg femur and ribs and bruising to almost every part of her body.
Under cross examination by Seán Gillane, SC for the prosecution, Ms Harrington said in sworn evidence that she was not responsible for the murder of the youngster.
Mr Gillane asked Ms Harrington to ‘solve the mystery’ of what had occurred to Santina. Karen said she had thought about what had occurred to Santina for three years and had no answer.
Mr Gillane said: ‘Santina did not cause the injuries to herself. Do you accept that the only person with her was you?’ Ms Harrington replied: ‘No.’ ‘Would you like to name anyone else with her?’ Mr Gillane asked.
He then asked if Ms Harrington had not inflicted the injuries on the youngster, then who did she think had. The accused said that she couldn’t comment on this.
‘I cannot answer that. I am unsure to say. I have thought about this for over three years,’ she responded.
Ms Harrington accepted the proposition put forward by Mr Gillane that Santina did not cause the injuries to herself but when the prosecution counsel said that she was the ‘only person with [Santina]’, she said ‘no.’
She said she had been woken from her sleep in her apartment at 3am on July 5, 2019 and that a row had ‘escalated’ with her then partner, Michael Cawley.
Ms Harrington accepted that he left shortly after and that he left alone, leaving Santina in the apartment. She also agreed that
‘How could you not have noticed?’
she and Santina were alone for a period of time in the apartment.
Mr Gillane put it to Ms Harrington that when Michael Cawley left, Santina was ‘alive and uninjured’. Ms Harrington said that she couldn’t confirm that.
‘Why not?’ Mr Gillane asked. ‘If there were injuries, how could you not have noticed?’
Ms Harrington answered: ‘I ask myself the same. All I can recall back when I vision Santina, I don’t see any bruises or injuries or blood or anything like that.
‘All the injuries she had I don’t know anything about it.’
Ms Harrington didn’t respond when Mr Gillane asked if if she had seen missing tufts of hair from the head of the child or a bleeding lip at that point.
He put it to her that she, alongside the jury, had been shown CCTV evidence from when Michael Cawley left the apartment during the early hours of July 5, 2019, and that nobody other than Karen Harrington entered or left until Michael returned to find the child injured.
When asked if she accepted that Michael Cawley, who was captured on CCTV in Cork city centre for several hours that morning, hadn’t inflicted the injuries, she said: ‘I don’t know exactly what happened from 3am to 5am. I was suddenly woken from my sleep.’
Mr Gillane again asked her if she would accept that the father of the child was not responsible for her death. Ms Harrington said it was not a question for her to answer.
Mr Gillane said that if Santina didn’t do it, and neither Michael Cawley or a mysterious stranger was responsible for the death, who was? She said she couldn’t say.
Mr Gillane put it to her that she was responsible for the death of the toddler.
‘You inflicted those horrific injuries,’ he said.
She defiantly said that she was not responsible for the crime.
‘I did not inflict injuries on Santina Cawley,’ she replied.
The trial continues in front of Justice Michael McGrath and a jury of seven men and four women. The 12th juror in the case was excused last week.