Jury in infant murder trial must be "certain" of father's guilt, defence say

A jury at the Central Criminal Court has heard closing arguments in the trial of a man accused of murdering his infant son in Co Mayo. John Tighe, aged 40, of Lavallyroe, Ballyhaunis, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of his six-and-a-half-month-old son on 1 June 2013. The prosecution alleges the child choked on tissue deliberately placed in his throat. The defence maintained the boy choked on tissue he reached while unattended during nappy changing. Defence counsel Mícheál P O'Higgins SC stressed to jurors they must be certain of guilt beyond reasonable doubt and cannot convict on suspicion. He argued inconsistencies in the accused's account were inevitable given the distressed circumstances and questioned whether expert evidence supported an innocent explanation. Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy outlined three possible verdicts: guilty of murder, guilty of manslaughter, or not guilty. The jury will begin deliberations following the judge's charge completion tomorrow.