Dad accused of murdering baby blames child’s mum
A FATHER who denies shaking and murdering his baby daughter has told a jury the child’s mother was responsible – claiming ‘there’s no other explanation.’
Darin Harvey repeatedly told a jury at Bolton Crown Court police took advantage of him as a ‘broken man’ in interviews following his daughter’s death – and that he would ‘put on [his] gravestone’ that he did not shake her to death.
Mr Harvey, 26, is accused of shaking Felicity-May Harvey on January 8, 2021, causing her ‘catastrophic’ head and spine injuries. Felicity-May died three days later, aged 20 days.
It is alleged Mr Harvey, of Birch Road, Wardle, Rochdale, shook baby Felicity-May while his fiancée and the baby’s mother, Heather Connolly, was out of their Heywood home between 2.15pm and 2.30pm. Mr Harvey denies this, saying he found Felicity-May injured when he went to feed her.
Referring to Ms Connolly, he told the jury: “She knew what she had done. She knew she fed her, she told two people she had fed her and something [has] gone wrong... she panicked and shook her. There’s no other explanation – that’s what happened.”
Mr Harvey gave evidence over two days at his trial, questioned by prosecutor Tim Storrie KC and defence barrister James Mulholland KC. After meeting Ms Connolly in early 2020, they decided to have a child together.
Felicity-May was born in December 2020, with a cleft lip and palette, the court heard. “I just felt like the luckiest bloke in the world,” Mr Harvey told jurors.
Mr Harvey said he was comfortable feeding Felicity-May, but that Ms Connolly struggled, which upset her. He told the court January 8 was a ‘normal’ day and that he fed his daughter at 11.30am.
Mr Harvey said that around 2pm, Ms Connolly went upstairs at their Stirling Place home to do her hair and smoke, which was ‘unusual.’ Ms Connolly left the house soon after and sent him a WhatsApp message saying FelicityMay was ‘due a feed,’ which was also unusual according to Mr Harvey.
He said he took milk bottles upstairs to the bathroom to prepare them. Mr Harvey told the court he stayed in the bathroom until at least 2.28pm. The court heard phone records showed he was on Facebook Messenger at that point. He said he then went into the bedroom. ‘Alarm bells started ringing,’ when he looked at Felicity-May’s face, which was ‘blue,’ he told the court. “Her eyes rolled back as I was holding her it was horrible.”
Mr Harvey told the jury he then called Ms Connolly. Mr Mulholland KC asked about Mr Harvey’s arrest. He said: “I wanted to help police and tell them everything I could. They wouldn’t accept anything I was saying.
“I was scared and petrified, I was being bombarded with questions... the pressure was immense, I had no choice but to give them answers.”
Mr Mulholland asked the defendant if he shook Felicity-May.
“Hand on my heart, no,” he replied. In cross-examination, Mr Storrie alleged there were a number of inconsistencies in Mr Harvey’s account. He said: “Your answers to the police were different to what you’ve given to the jury.
“Why tell the jury one thing when you told the police something else?”
Mr Harvey responded: “In the interviews I was in a very bad way compared to how I am now.”
Mr Storrie KC said that during police interviews, Mr Harvey said he went to see baby Felicity-May soon after 2.15pm, but said he told the jury he was on the toilet until just before 2.30pm.
“You were asked about who you were sending a Facebook message to at 14.29. When did you decide to tell the truth about going to the loo?,” Mr Storrie asked.
Mr Harvey said ‘no parent can think right’ when questioned by officers.
“I was put under pressure, interviewed for hour after hour, same questions over and over again and if they didn’t like the answer they would ask it again,” Mr Harvey said.
Mr Storrie said: “The account given to police is utterly different to jury, why would you say things if they were not true?” Mr Harvey replied: “Because I wasn’t right, I’m not trying to mislead.”
Mr Storrie added: “You know what dreadful harm shaking a baby does?” Mr Harvey replied: “I’m telling you I didn’t shake her – the person who did, is not me.”
Referring to CCTV played to the court previously showing Ms Connolly leaving the house and walking along Sutherland Road, just after 2pm, Mr Storrie asked the defendant: “You’re saying she [Ms Connolly] must have known what she did?”.
Mr Harvey said: “She knew what she had done. She knew she fed her, she told two people she had fed her and something [has] gone wrong... she panicked and shook her. There’s no other explanation – that’s what happened.”
Mr Harvey denies murder.
She knew what she had done...she panicked and shook her. There’s no other explanation Defendant Darin Harvey