No prosecution over twin's death

No prosecution over twin's death

By Kevin Magee
BBC Nolan Show

No-one is to be prosecuted over the death of a Romanian child who suffered horrendous injuries while in the care of his County Armagh adoptive parents.

The Public Prosecution Service has decided not to charge anyone in connection with the child's death.

David Briggs, aged 14 months, died in October 2000.

His twin Samuel suffered a fractured skull at the hands of his adoptive father weeks after his twin brother died.

The twins were taken to Northern Ireland by Geoffrey and Gwen Briggs, former overseas missionaries who lived at Corcrain Road in Portadown.

Three months after the twins arrived in Northern Ireland, little David Briggs was brought by ambulance from his adoptive parents' home to the accident and emergency department of Craigavon Hospital. He was dead when he arrived there.

He had at least 16 fractures on his body - but these went unnoticed by the pathologist who examined him.

The other twin, Samuel, remained in the care of the Briggs after the death of the first child.

Two weeks after David's death, Samuel was admitted to the A and E department of the same hospital suffering from a fractured skull.  

In 2002, Geoffrey Briggs confessed that he had struck the child and was later convicted of grievous bodily harm for assaulting him with a clenched fist. He served one year in prison.

It was only when the injured child was brought to the hospital that the X-rays taken at the time of his brother David's death were examined.

They showed David had suffered multiple injuries - something the pathologist had failed to notice.

David's body was exhumed and a second post mortem was carried out by the same pathologist.

'Repeated serious assaults' 

He contended it was not possible to establish the cause of death.

However, a leading paediatric pathologist disagreed. She said damage to the child's heart, brain and lungs was caused by interference to his breathing.

She also said David had suffered repeated serious assaults during his short life.

A family court judge later concluded that the assaults on the dead child "occurred during the care of Mr and Mrs Briggs."

He said there was "no basis for considering that those injuries existed outside the care of Mr and Mrs Briggs".

He added: "It has not been established who was responsible for these injuries."

The police carried out an initial investigation into the death of the child.

Following an inquiry, the police were asked to re-investigate the death.

That file was passed to the Public Prosecution Service which has in turn now decided not to charge anyone with the child's death.

'Disciplinary action'

A spokesman told the BBC: "The decision was for no prosecution against any person."

It is understood that decision was taken in December 2006, but details that there will be no criminal charges into the child's death only emerged this week following a media inquiry.

The surviving child Samuel was removed from the Briggs's care and re-adopted.

The pathologist, Dr Michael Curtis, was later cleared of serious professional misconduct by the General Medical Council.

He is now the deputy state pathologist in the Republic of Ireland.

A health worker faced disciplinary action in relation to the case.

In another twist, it transpired that the children were not orphans at all.

A BBC Northern Ireland Spotlight investigation in 2004 revealed that the children's birth parents were alive and living in Romania.

It is understood the entire adoption process cost the Briggs about £12,000, but there was no evidence to suggest any of the money went to the twins natural parents.

Their birth mother maintained that she had never given permission for the children to be put up for adoption by the Romanian authorities.