Blackpool baby's injuries not caused by medics, murder trial told

Injuries to a baby who was allegedly sexually abused and murdered by one of his adoptive parents were not caused during attempts to save his life, a jury has been told. Preston Davey, aged 13 months, was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital unresponsive by former teacher Jamie Varley and his partner John McGowan-Fazakerley on 27 July 2023, Preston Crown Court heard. Varley told police he had left Preston in the bath for three or four minutes and then found him submerged in the water. Home Office pathologist Dr Alison Armour ruled out drowning as a cause of death, with a post-mortem examination revealing he had suffered about 40 injuries, including 30 external bruises, internal bruising and a fractured arm. Medics worked for nearly an hour trying to resuscitate Preston before he was declared dead, the court heard. During the four months Preston was at the defendants' Blackpool home, it is alleged he was routinely ill-treated and had indecent images and videos taken of him. The prosecution also say he was sexually abused and physically assaulted. Armour described some of Preston's injuries as "most unusual", including what she thought was a bruise consistent with a human bite mark o