Baby suffered 'potentially life-threatening' injuries

Kimberly Dow, 34, of Maitland Street, inflicted potentially life threatening injuries on the defenceless infant when she was supposed to be looking after him.

She denied the murder bid during a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh and lodged a special defence of incrimination, naming the boy's mother.

But Dow was found guilty of assaulting the child on March 17 in 2022 by shaking him, inflicting trauma to his head and causing injury to his head by means unknown, to his severe injury and danger of life and attempting to murder him at her home.

Advocate depute Michelle Brannagan told jurors: "There is only evidence of one single occasion when he suffered injury and that was ... when he was in Kimberly Dow's care."

When the baby was taken to hospital after the attack 15 distinct and separate bruises were seen on his face. 

He was also found to have retinal haemorrhages in both eyes which an experienced paediatric opthalmologist described as too numerous to count.

The baby boy suffered significant haemorrhaging around the brain and expert evidence indicated that the blood was so extensive and on so many areas of the brain that it was likely he suffered a prolonged period of shaking.  

The brain injuries were so severe that it could have led to the child's death, the court heard.

Ms Brannagan told the court: "I suggest an overwhelming picture comes into painfully sharp focus. This was no accident. Someone hurt him."

The prosecutor said all of the evidence suggested that the child was uninjured and behaving completely normally when he was dropped off at Dow's home.

She said there was not "a single piece of evidence" to support the incrimination claim and added: "In fact I didn't hear any evidence in this trial to indicate that (the mother) had caused any injury to her son. It is a red herring."

During accounts given by Dow she claimed that she put the child on a couch and left briefly but when she returned he was on the floor and had fallen.

In one message she said the baby had an accident and fell and "gave himself a sore one".

The mother of the child said she had no issues or concerns after Dow previously looked after the child, when she and her mother contracted Covid.

She said: "He came back his normal, wee self - happy and content."

The mother said on this occasion Dow phoned her and asked if she could take him for the night.

She said she tried and failed to make contact with Dow after she left her son in her care, but later heard the claim that he fell off a couch.

She then received a message telling her to hurry up to come for the child as he was screaming and "tensing" his body. 

The mother said in her evidence that Dow tried to apologise to her when they met.  

Dow was on bail during her trial but was remanded in custody following the verdict.

Sentence was deferred for the preparation of a background report.

The trial judge, Lady Ross, said: "I am satisfied given the seriousness of the offence and the expectation of a custodial sentence that the appropriate course is to revoke bail and remand her in custody."