Felicity-May Harvey

Unsolved Murders

Age: 2 weeks

Sex: female

Date: 11 Jan 2021

Place: Stirling Place, Heywood

Felicity-May Harvey died after being shaken. She died in hospital on 11 January 2021.

Her 25-year-old father was tried for her murder but acquitted of both murder and manslaughter at Bolton Crown Court. He was accused of having shaken her.

Felicity-May Harvey was taken to the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital after the police were called to their address following a report of concern for her welfare on 8 January 2021. When they arrived she was found to be 'blue' and was taken to hospital where she died three days later.

Felicity-May Harvey's father had been living in the property in Stirling Place with his fiance, Felicity-May Harvey's mother.

She was noted for having had a cleft lip and palate.

The trial heard that Felicity-May Harvey had suffered catastrophic injuries after being shaken with an abusive level of force.

The prosecution noted that the account that Felicity-May Harvey's father gave at the trial was inconsistent with what he initially gave to the police.

It was claimed that he had shaken her whilst going to feed her whilst her mother was out of the house.

However. Felicity-May Harvey's father denied having shaken her. He said that he had ben in the toilet and that when he came out and went to see Felicity-May Harvey, she was blue and her eyes were rolling.

It was heard that Felicity-May Harvey's mother left the property at 2pm, and claimed that Felicity-May Harvey's father went to see Felicity-May Harvey soon after and had then shaken her. However, he claimed that he had been in the bathroom until 2.28pm, at which time he went into the bedroom and found she was blue. He noted that when he went into the bedroom that he had gone in with no concerns.

He said that he then called Felicity-May Harvey's mother, who by chance was at that time outside of the house and that they then called the emergency services who came to the house at about 6.30pm.

He said that it was:

God’s honest truth that he did not kill his daughter.

He said that after she was taken to hospital that his world stopped. He said:

I wanted to help police and tell them everything I could. They wouldn't accept anything I was saying. I was scared and petrified, I was being bombarded with questions. The pressure was immense, I had no choice but to give them answers. The pressure and the way they were making me feel I was just talking and talking and just spoke when I didn't know an answer, I wasn't lying, I just didn’t remember.

When he was asked whether he killed Felicity-May Harvey, he said:

Hand on my heart, no.

When he was cross-examined, he said:

I didn't shake her, I will say that until I've gone blue, I will put that on my gravestone. They (police) took advantage of a broken man. I'm telling you I did not shake her. I don't know how many times I have to say this. All I could think about was my baby. My heart was ripped into pieces, which the police couldn't care less about in those interviews. I was not trying to con the police at all, I wanted to help but they were practically torturing me.

Felicity-May Harvey's father then went on to accuse her mother of having caused the injuries.

He said:

She knew what she had done. She knew she fed her, she told two people she had fed her and something has gone wrong. She panicked and shook her. There's no other explanation, that's what happened.

The jury spent almost a week deliberating before returning their not guilty verdict.

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see www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk

see Daily Mail

see Mirror