THERE WERE dramatic scenes outside a Belfast courtroom yesterday after an elderly couple were acquitted of sexually assaulting and killing their disabled granddaughter.
Moments after trial judge Mr Justice McLaughlin directed the Crown Court jury to acquit David (88) and Sarah Johnston (86), their only daughter, Cheryl McKeown, collapsed outside the courtroom.
Her daughter Rebecca (14), who had a plethora of life-limiting medical conditions, died in March 2001, five days after sustaining a vaginal laceration.
It had been the crown case that one or other grandparent had caused that wound when they were looking after her for a few hours, but yesterday Toby Hedworth QC, prosecuting, said that having “anxiously” reviewed the state of the evidence and testimony which was yet to come, a decision had been made to offer no further evidence against the couple.
Mr Hedworth said it was the evidence of Dr Mary Donnelly, who eventually admitted 11 years after examining the profoundly disabled child that two of her fingers “unintentionally” slipped into her vagina, coupled with the evidence of State Pathologist Prof Jack Crane that he could not be sure the laceration led to the pneumonia which killed Rebecca, that led the crown to its decision.
After Mr Justice McLaughlin directed the jury of seven men and five women to find both Mr and Mrs Johnston not guilty and told them they were free to go, Mr Johnston told the judge, “thank you very much”.
Later the Public Prosecution Service issued a statement on the withdrawal of the case saying it was “satisfied that this case was properly brought” and that the developments which led to its collapse “could not have been foreseen.”
“The decision to discontinue the prosecution has been taken as a result of the evidence given by a witness and medical experts at trial.
“On the morning that the witness was due to give evidence at Belfast Crown Court, she provided an additional account of her examination of Rebecca which took place on March 19th, 2001.
“The additional account was immediately disclosed to the defence and the witness subsequently gave this evidence in court.”
The PPS said it also had to take account of the evidence of Northern Ireland State Pathologist, Prof Jack Crane, and his concession “that the blood loss might not have caused the pneumonia from which Rebecca died”.