Two nurses yesterday fought back tears as they described the injuries suffered by a baby girl after she was allegedly put in a tumble dryer by her mum’s friend.
Elspeth Brown, a registered midwife, struggled to contain her emotions as she told Dundee Sheriff Court how blood inside the child’s ear had signalled a “red flag”.
She was giving evidence at the trial of Thomas Dunn, who is accused of assaulting the 13-month-old tot, putting her in a tumble dryer and turning it on.
Elspeth said: “There was blood in her ear canal. That signifies something serious going on, it’s a red flag.” She said Dunn had told her the baby had fallen over.
Fellow nurse Erin Smith also struggled to contain her emotions as she told the court the baby had been “floppy and pale”.
Paediatrician Helen Dunn said the extensive injuries and lack of an adequate explanation were “suggestive of abuse”.
Thomas Dunn, 25, of Hamilton, denies charges including assaulting the baby girl to her severe injury and danger of her life, and of assaulting a boy at a house in Arbroath by restricting his breathing.
The trial, before Sheriff Alastair Brown and a jury, continues.
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