Robert Smith QC and Matthew Donkin at Newcastle Crown Court

Robert Smith QC, leading Matthew Donkin, has successfully prosecuted a mother and her partner, both of whom were convicted of Causing or Allowing the Death of a Child. Victoria Burke and Paul Nicholson had been the carers of Miss Burke’s daughter, who died on the 14.12.13.

There were no witnesses to the incident which led to death and the account of each defendant was to deny that anything untoward had taken place. The prosecution case relied upon detailed and complex expert evidence of ophthalmic pathology, neuro-pathology and paediatric pathology in order to establish that the child’s death was a result of a traumatic head injury.

For more information:

• BBC

Authors

Robert Smith KC

Call 1971 | Silk 1986

Matthew Donkin

Call 2004