More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Home Folkestone News Article
A 27-year-old Residential Home Support worker has been convicted of killing a three year old child in a fit of temper.
Paul Marsh had claimed he had found Jessica Dalgleish slumped behind the bannister near the stairs.
But the jury rejected his account of finding the child slumped at the foot of stairs in Folkestone.
Now, the judge has told him that although he was being granted bail pending sentence on December 20 - he should expect " a substantial jail sentence".
Jessica was airlifted from Folkestone to Kings College Hospital in London but died days later from her fatal brain injuries.
Marsh was arrested at the hospital and told police: "This will ruin me."
Dressed in a black suit, he told the court that since the incident he had lost his job and friends after appearing in news articles. He says his mental health had also suffered.
Read more of the trial here:
There were cries of "yes" from the public gallery as he was convicted on charges of manslaughter and child cruelty.
The jury were out for seven hours and 21 minutes before bringing in guilty verdicts. He added that he feared his arrest would affect his job prospects in the care industry.
Marsh, of Sandgate, Folkestone, had denied manslaughter in December 2019 or cruelty to the child
He told the jury that he was born in Dover and raised in Hythe before landing a job at a residential home.
Prosecutor Jennifer Knight QC said he had told the mother that there was nothing wrong with Jessica when she found mystery bruises on her in the weeks before her death.
She said: "You know there was no mystery because you had caused the injuries."
He was remanded on bail while reports were being prepared and he was escorted from the court by a rear exit.
