Mother and her female lover 'murdered' 16-month-old girl; then blamed it on a toddler

A West Yorkshire woman has been accused of murdering her 16-month-old daughter by stamping on her with her female lover last year.

The baby girl, Star Hobson, died in September last year from the injuries she received at her home in Wesley Place in Keighley. Her autopsy revealed that there was extensive damage to her abdominal cavity "caused by a severe and forceful blow or blows, either in the form of punching, stamping or kicking to the abdomen," in addition to two fractures to her right leg "caused by forceful twisting." She also had severe bruising and a fracture on the back of the skull, with all the injuries seemingly "non-accidental in origin."

Her mother Frankie Smith, 20, and her partner, Savannah Brockhill, 28, were put on trial on Wednesday to determine their role in her death. A jury at Bradford Crown Court was told about the "utterly catastrophic" injuries that Smith caused when she "repeatedly physically assaulted" her daughter over the weeks and months before her death. Her partner, who is a bouncer, also allegedly participated in the atrocities, reports The Mirror.

Prosecutor Alistair MacDonald QC presented video evidence of the "cruelty and psychological harm" committed by them, showing a clip that featured the girl being shouted at in her home. He also told the jury that when paramedics were called to the flat to aid Hobson, they discovered "the body of an apparently lifeless, pale, baby wearing only a disposable nappy". They took her to Airedale General Hospital but the injuries she sustained were "so catastrophic that there never was any real chance of saving her life."

He also noted that there was a 15-minute delay in calling the emergency services, during which the accused seemingly searched on Google "shock in babies" and "how to bring a baby out of shock." The duo were the only adults in the flat at the time, accompanied by two other young children.

"It is inconceivable that any carer would wait 15 minutes to call for professional help when their 16 month-old child was showing symptoms of a medical catastrophe. Any innocent carer would have been on the phone within seconds, not 15 minutes," the prosecutor said.

After allegedly killing the baby, the accused tried to blame her death on a toddler. The prosecutor argued that it is "nothing short of absurd to suggest that these injuries were caused by another young child." He also noted that the women tried to keep away the social services or any relatives who questioned them about the victim's condition.

One witness narrated one such incident to the court, where Brockhill complained about the victim accidentally biting her finger while eating, and her girlfriend responded by deliberately biting her daughter's finger.

Both Brockhill and Smith have continued to deny murder and causing or allowing the child's death.