A two-year-old girl, Isabelle Rose Welsh, died in September last year following a series of violent assaults, including sexual abuse, attributed to her mother, Alexandra Walker, 25, and Walker’s boyfriend, Harrison Simpson, 22. The pair are currently on trial at Teesside Crown Court, facing charges including murder, causing or allowing the death of a child, sexual assault, and child cruelty.

Prosecutors allege that Isabelle endured a prolonged “campaign of violence” resulting in 21 broken bones, including fractures to her arms, legs, spine, and a spiral fracture to her leg noted during a hospital visit just 11 days prior to her death. At that time, despite suspicion by some medical staff, including a nurse who had raised safeguarding concerns, Isabelle was discharged after Walker attributed the leg injury to an accident involving the cot bars.

Isabelle was found unresponsive at the foot of the stairs in Walker’s home in Thornaby, Teesside, on September 13, after a 999 call was placed. Paramedics discovered her without a pulse, covered in bruises, with blood in her nappy and vomit on her face. She was rushed to hospital but died shortly after, suffering a catastrophic head injury. A medical examination revealed that her skull had been fractured and that she had sustained severe brain damage from being violently shaken and having her head struck against a hard surface.

The prosecution argues that the fatal head injury was deliberately inflicted and was the culmination of ongoing abuse over several weeks. They contend that both Walker and Simpson were aware of the abuse but failed to intervene or report it, implicating them in the neglect and violence that led to Isabelle’s death. It was also suggested that Walker delayed seeking medical help for the leg fracture, only taking Isabelle to the GP and hospital after prolonged pain complaints.

The court heard that Walker and Simpson had been in a relationship for less than four months before the child’s death, with Simpson spending significant time at Walker’s residence and interacting closely with Isabelle. Communications presented in court indicate tension between the two adults, including an alleged reference to Simpson as a paedophile, though the defendants deny all charges.

Following Isabelle’s hospital discharge but before her death, a health visitor had contacted Walker by phone regarding her hospital stay, noting no concerns without visiting the home or the child, according to prosecutor Richard Wright KC.

Walker and Simpson have pleaded not guilty, and the trial is ongoing, with proceedings expected to last six weeks.