Toddler death charge man walks free after 23 years

Stephen Knox, 53, allegedly pushed two-year-old Mark Harrison down the stairs at his home in Leicester as the boy's sister Kerry, who was only three at the time, looked on in horror.

Nottingham Crown Court heard she was haunted by the memory of her brother's death but was told by Knox to keep it secret or face the same fate.

Hours later the toddler died from a brain haemorrhage caused by the fall, Peter Joyce QC said, as he put the prosecution's case at the opening of Knox's murder trial.

The court heard the Crown Prosecution Service brought the case after Ms Harrison told counsellor Anthony Scarborough in January 2007 about what she supposedly witnessed 23 years earlier.

He went to police and the case was re-opened, despite a coroner ruling in 1987 that the boy's death was accidental.

During the trial, the court heard an injury to the back of Mark's head could not be explained by Knox's claim that the boy slipped and fell three steps while playing.

But today it emerged three expert prosecution witnesses could not agree whether the fall allegedly witnessed by Mark's sister led to the toddler's death on December 12, 1986.

This led prosecutors to offer no evidence against Knox, of Ingrow Lane, Keighley, on the third day of his trial.

A spokesman for the CPS defended its decision to prosecute Knox.

He said: "This case involved the tragic death of a two-year-old child 23 years ago. It was a complex case to investigate and prosecute.

"When deciding whether this matter should proceed to court, the CPS concluded that there was a realistic prospect of conviction based on the eye-witness account and the expert evidence.

"As with all prosecutions, the case was kept under continuous review.

"As it became clear during the course of the trial that some of the expert witness evidence was not consistent enough to sustain a conviction, the only course of action available was not to proceed any further with the case."

During the trial Ms Harrison, now 26, said her brother suffered physical abuse from Knox after they moved in to the house on Drayton Road, in the New Parks area of Leicester, with their eldest sister Lesley and mother Margaret.

The move came after their mother split from their father Colin Harrison and set up home with Knox.

Earlier, Kerry Harrison told the jury she was still traumatised by witnessing the death of her brother. She claimed she was at the bottom of the stairs when Mark was pushed from the top by Knox.

Breaking down in tears, Ms Harrison said: "I've thought about it a lot. It's been there all these years.

"I have been carrying it around with me but now I have been speaking about it to the police it's helping the memory go. It's something I don't want to see when I shut my eyes."

Recalling how she remembered her brother's fall, she added: "It's really blurry. Steve grabbed Mark by the arm and he dragged him upstairs.

"He got to the top and threw him down. He just rolled all the way to the bottom. He was screaming and Steve came to take him to bed."

Within hours of the fall Mark had died from his injuries, the court was told.

He was found by three friends lying cold and lifeless in an upstairs bedroom at the house after they were alerted by Mark's mother screaming for help in the street.

All three men tried to revive the tot but he was pronounced dead by paramedics.

When Knox was arrested in July 2007, following his step-daughter's revelation to her counsellor, he told detectives Mark missed a step and fell down three steps, cutting his chin and banging his head.

Mark Wall QC, defending, disputed Ms Harrison's recollection of events. He claimed Knox was playing with Mark when the toddler accidentally fell.

Mr Wall said: "He (Knox) threw toys down the stairs to Mark, didn't he?"

"No," replied Ms Harrison.

The barrister continued: "I suggest to you that it was bedtime and Mr Knox started to chase Mark up the stairs, didn't he?"

"No," repeated Ms Harrison.

"That Mark slipped and fell down a few stairs?"

"No," the witness replied.

A spokeswoman for Leicestershire Police said they were not issuing a statement following the collapse of the trial.