"Inconsistencies" in father's account of baby's death, prosecution say

A father accused of murdering his six-and-a-half-month-old son at his home in Ballyhaunis, County Mayo, faces closing arguments at the Central Criminal Court. John Tighe, aged 40, has pleaded not guilty to the charge relating to an incident on 1 June 2013. The prosecution alleges the infant died after a tissue wad was placed in his throat, while the defence maintains the death was accidental. During closing speeches, the prosecution highlighted alleged inconsistencies in the accused's successive accounts to gardaí and emergency services regarding how the child came to choke, the timeline of events, and his attempts at intervention. The defence countered that such variations are natural given the traumatic circumstances, and emphasised the accused's immediate call for emergency assistance and his previously unblemished character. Medical evidence from both prosecution and defence paediatricians was contested regarding whether the child could have self-ingested the obstruction. The jury will hear the completion of closing arguments before Justice Patrick McCarthy.