Cairns trial: Dad pleads not guilty to grievous bodily harm against baby 

The defence lawyer for a father accused of shaking his baby so badly he was given brain damage has suggested the injuries could have been caused by someone else, a Cairns jury has heard.

J has significant and permanent physical and cognitive injury.

The defence lawyer for a man accused of causing serious and lifelong injuries to his four-month-old son told a Cairns District Court jury there was no direct evidence he had done it and suggested the injuries could have been caused earlier in the day by someone else.

The man has pleaded not guilty to grievous bodily harm of the child, ‘J’, at a Cairns unit in September 2022.

The court has heard medical evidence the child’s injuries were consistent with having been shaken violently and that without a craniotomy he would have died.

J has significant and permanent physical and cognitive injury, while the extent of damage such as vision impairment won’t be known until he is older

.The court heard that on Saturday night, the man and three or four friends and relatives went to a party and did not return until early on Sunday morning.

J, his sibling and 11-year-old cousin were in the care of the child’s mother that night.

The 11-year-old said the mother yelled at the baby to go to sleep.

The trial is expected to continue in Cairns next week. Picture: File

The man told police he slept until lunchtime and got up and did housework, minding J and his sibling while the women went out.

The women returned and the 11-year-old was asked to check on J in the bedroom and she said the baby was shaking.

The mother saw mucus coming out of his mouth, he was twitching and an ambulance was called at 5pm.

J was swiftly transferred from Cairns to Townsville and on to Brisbane Children’s Hospital for emergency surgery.Defence barrister Kelly Goodwin suggested J could have been injured by the mother or dropped by the 11-year old.

“You will find (him) not guilty because there is no direct evidence and in my submission the evidence cannot exclude that J got the injuries on Sunday morning … before (the man) got home from the party,” he said.

Mr Goodwin said civilian witnesses were unreliable and inconsistent.

The baby was eventually flown to Brisbane. Picture: File photos

He said the mother’s demeanor giving evidence was that she seemed at times nervous, confused, stressed and emotional.Senior crown prosecutor Aaron Dunkerton, who addressed the jury first, said they had heard evidence the man didn’t think the baby was his, and once pinched him, leaving a bruise, and made him cry, but there was other evidence he was a loving father.

“This is a circumstantial case,” Mr Dunkerton declared.

“There is no evidence any act such as shaking or dropping occurred before the others left the house,” he said, adding that medical experts had testified a drop could not have caused the severe injuries.

“Mr Goodwin and I can stand here until we are blue in the face putting our spin on the evidence, but in a case like this, spin doesn’t matter … There are simple but powerful facts, plainly something happened while the defendant was left alone with (the two children) – he was seen to be fine, then seen to be not fine, and the medical evidence tells us what happened during that period,” Mr Dunkerton said.

The trial has been running all week. Picture: File

He said forensic paediatrician Dr Deanna True tied the medical evidence together and she said symptoms of the severe head injuries would have been immediate.

Dr True said it was unlikely the injury was sustained on Sunday morning.“

Dr True noted there was still active bleeding when he went to hospital – inferring the injury was relatively recent,” Mr Dunkerton said.

“As hard as Mr Goodwin tried to throw (the 11-year-old) under the bus, that didn’t work, there is simply no evidence that occurred, there is no evidence the baby was dropped, and even if he was, it could not have caused the injuries,” Mr Dunkerton said.

Mr Dunkerton said the mother never said the man was physically violent toward her and apart from the pinch was not violent toward J.

“She wasn’t there trying to stick the boot in,” Mr Dunkerton said.

“My submission is he wasn’t truthful with police about what happened after the women left.

“He said to police he was willing to give one little story, and I suggest it was a story.

“It is a story inconsistent with indisputable injuries and medical evidence,” Mr Dunkerton said.

“He was not curious about what happened to J and there was no frustration or bewilderment and that’s because he knew the reason, the reason was he’d injured (the baby),” Mr Dunkerton said.

“Perhaps he was sleep deprived, partying to sunrise, frustrated, it was hot in the unit … he thought J was the product of an affair (she) had – either way, he took it.”

The trial before Judge Tracy Fantin continues.

 * J is a pseudonym 

Originally published as Cairns trial: Dad pleads not guilty to grievous bodily harm against baby