Couple Convicted After Baby 'Shaken To Death' In East Sussex

Wednesday, 17 March 2021 16:49

By Charlotte Baker @Ch4rtweets

A man who shook his baby to death in East Sussex in 2018 has been convicted of her murder.

Police said Michael Roe, 33, of Alderbrook Close, Crowborough, faced a murder trial at Hove Crown Court on Wednesday (March 17), after the initial trial in March 2020 was abandoned due to the pandemic.

In November, the jury was dismissed because of an irregularity and a retrial was scheduled, which opened on February 3.

According to Sussex Police, the court heard that eight-week-old Holly Roe had suffered brain injuries at least three times leading up to her death in September 2018.

She had also sustained 12 fractures to her rib cage before ambulance paramedics were called to a report of her having breathing difficulties.

They found her cold and unresponsive and rushed her to Pembury Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

A post mortem showed that the cause of death was a traumatic head injury.

The jury was told that the final head injuries would have left Holly unconscious, despite extreme pain caused by her fractured ribs.

Her mother Tiffany Tate, 22, along with Roe, faced a charge of causing or allowing the death of a child.

She had faced a charge of murder, but the trial judge in the second trial instructed a not guilty verdict be returned and the indictment was amended for the third trial.

On Wednesday 17 March, the jury returned their verdict finding Roe guilty of murder.

They also found Tiffany Tate guilty of allowing the death of a child.

Both are due to be sentenced on Friday (March 19).

Detective Superintendent Emma Heater from the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team said:

"Holly Roe was only eight weeks old when she died having been found unconscious at her home address by her parents. An examination discovered that Holly had a fatal head injury as well as numerous rib fractures.

"The people who should have been caring for Holly have today been found guilty of offences relating to her death. Michael Roe, her father, has been found guilty of murder and her mother, Tiffany Tate, has been found guilty of causing or allowing the death of Holly.

"These cases are always very difficult for everyone: the extended family and people who knew Holly during her very short life, the medical teams that responded to this incident and my colleagues who conducted the investigation.

"I would like to thank all of those witnesses who gave evidence and also the jury who have listened to harrowing detail and taken time to consider the evidence carefully before reaching their verdict."