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David
Dearlove (left), 71, always maintained that 19-month-old Paul Booth (right)
died as the result of an accidental fall from his bed in Stockton-on-Tees
(inset left) on October 1st 1968. But he is now accused of having swung the boy
into a fireplace, causing catastrophic injuries. His alleged crime when unreported
for decades until Paul's brother Peter, who was just four when
Paul died, saw a faded photograph of the youngster being held by Dearlove on
Facebook in 2015 (centre). He said he had witnessed the alleged murder and a
family member contacted the police.
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●Stepfather had said
youngster had fallen out of his bed before tragic 1968 death ●But the boy's brother
came forward after seeing a photo of the stepfather online ●He said he witnessed the
toddler being swung into a fireplace on day of death ●Stepfather is now on
trial for murder and child cruelty, which he denies
An abusive stepfather
carried the chilling secret of a toddler's brutal death with him for almost 50
years before he was finally accused of murder, a court has been told.
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A
local newspaper report still exists of the death of toddler for which a man is
now on trial for murder. The boy's brother said he saw the killing in 1968 and
came forward after seeing a picture of the alleged murderer on Facebook
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David
Dearlove, 71, always maintained that 19-month-old Paul Booth died as the result
of an accidental fall from his bed in October 1968.
But
he is now accused of having swung the boy into a fireplace, causing
catastrophic injuries which led to his death.
His
alleged crime went unreported for decades until Paul's brother Peter, who was
just four when Paul died, saw a faded photograph of the youngster being held by
Dearlove on Facebook in 2015.
For
years, a jury heard, Peter had been haunted by the memory of what he saw
through a gap in a door on the night Paul died.
He
said he saw David Dearlove swinging Paul by the ankles and dashing his head
against a fireplace.
Peter
Booth demanded Dearlove's family take down the photograph and then told his
cousin what he had seen that night 47 years earlier.
The
cousin told the police that Paul's death had actually been a murder and an
investigation was put in place.
Dearlove,
who had split from Paul's mother Carol Booth in 1970 and long-since left the
scene of his alleged crime in Stockton-on-Tees, was arrested at his new home in
Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.
The
pensioner, who had since remarried, was charged with Paul's murder and accused
of cruelty.
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The terrace house where the alleged murder took place has since been knocked
down
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Prosecutor
Richard Wright, QC, told Teesside Crown Court: 'There was and is no doubt as to
what medical condition caused the death of Paul Booth. He died because of a
severe injury to his brain that had itself been caused by a fractured skull.
The real issue then in 1968 as now nearly fifty years later in 2017 is what
caused that injury?'
The
court heard old bruising had also been found on Paul's body and other family
members said he had sustained injuries when left alone with Dearlove. However,
Dearlove was not arrested at the time.
The
case remained closed for nearly 50 years, until March 30, 2015, the court was
told.
Mr
Wright said: 'It was on that day that a cousin of Paul Booth contacted the
police. She was making the call on behalf of Paul's brother Peter, the little
boy who had been almost four years old on the night his brother died.
'The
police interviewed Peter as a witness for the every first time in 2015; he had
not been asked to give any account in 1968.
'What
he told in that interview is what has led us here, 50 years on, to the trial of
David Dearlove for the murder of his stepson Paul Booth.
'Peter
told the police that the death of Paul was not the result of an accidental fall
out of bed.
'He
had in fact seen how Paul came to be injured when he had crept downstairs to
get a drink that October night. 'Through a gap in the door into the sitting
room he had seen David Dearlove swinging Paul Booth around whilst holding onto
his ankles and had watched as his step father smashed the little boy's head
into the fire surround, causing the fatal injury to his skull by the impact.
'The
death of Paul Booth had been no accident, it had been as the result of a
deliberate act. It had been murder.'
The
boy's mother, Carol, has since died, the court heard.
Mr
Wright said: 'The catalyst for his complaint in 2015 appears to have been his
seeing a photograph posted on Facebook of his dead brother being held by David
Dearlove.'
The
prosecutor added: 'Peter contacted David Dearlove Jr and demanded that he
remove the photograph and then spoke with his cousin Tracy about why he was so
upset, telling her that he had seen David Dearlove swinging Paul by his ankles
in the front room, then striking his head off the fire surround causing the
fatal injury.
'He
had been extremely scared of David Dearlove because the violence in the
household extended not just to David Dearlove hurting Paul but also to him
regularly assaulting Peter.
'In
terms of violence directed at himself Peter Booth went on to tell the police
that David Dearlove was often violent and had on many occasions held him under
the water in the bath, that he would punch and kick him on a regular basis.'
Dearlove
denies the murder and unlawful killing of Paul Booth and further denies three
charges of child cruelty - defined as assault, ill treatment or neglect causing
injury to health - in 1967 to 1968.
The trial, expected to last
three weeks, continues.
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