A mum killed her two-month-old baby girl by crushing the infant’s chest “mostly likely” to stop her crying, a prosecutor has claimed.Abigail Palmer, 33, is accused of fracturing her daughter Teri-Rae’s ribs, and jurors were told it was a “deliberate” injury that “caused or at least contributed” to the newborn’s death.
A mum killed her two-month-old baby girl by crushing the infant’s chest “mostly likely” to stop her crying, a prosecutor has claimed.Abigail Palmer, 33, is accused of fracturing her daughter Teri-Rae’s ribs, and jurors were told it was a “deliberate” injury that “caused or at least contributed” to the newborn’s death.A skeletal examination found the baby, who was subject of a child protection plan, had old and fresh rib fractures after she died in January 2017, Birmingham Crown Court was told.Palmer, of Solihull, West Midlands, claims she took a nap on a sofa with her daughter lying on her chest, and when she woke up Teri-Rae was “blue and lifeless”, Birmingham Live reports.
The prosecution claims the rib fractures were deliberately inflicted, “most likely to silence her crying”.Palmer denies manslaughter and three charges of inflicting grievous bodily harm. Jonas Hankin QC, prosecuting, said Palmer was facing possible care proceedings after testing positive for cocaine while pregnant.Teri-Rae was born on October 24, 2016, and was made the subject of a child protection plan which banned her mother from using drugs or alcohol.Palmer had regular visits from health care and social workers, who did not raise any concerns about the mother and baby, said Mr Hankin.