"A father accused of
killing his six-year-old daughter in a violent rage has denied trying
to divert suspicion towards his partner. Ben Butler, 36, is accused of inflicting "catastrophic" head injuries on his daughter Ellie.He told the Old Bailey he would not blame her mother Jennie Gray "for anything". Mr Butler, from Sutton, south-west London, denies murder and child cruelty. He
has admitted failing to phone emergency services until two hours after
he found Ellie unresponsive in her bedroom on 28 October, 2013. Mr Butler first contacted Ms Gray at work and told her to come home. He told the court he then went out to walk the dog. Neighbours have confirmed they spoke to him. "That
means, doesn't it, that Jennie was the sole adult in the house for
quite a period of time leading up to the period before you rang the
ambulance?" asked Mr Justice Wilkie. Mr Butler agreed but said he was unsure how long Ms Gray was there. Shortly
after getting back, he rang for an ambulance. A transcript of his
conversation with the 999 operator showed Mr Butler was heard to say
"What happened, what happened, baby?" to Ms Gray. He subsequently tells the operator he does not know what happened and had gone upstairs to find Ellie had "fallen down". Mr
Justice Wilkie asked Mr Butler how he would respond to the suggestion
there was a "cover up" and he had sought to "transfer suspicion" from
himself. Mr Butler replied: "Absolutely not. I would not blame [Ms Gray] for anything."' He
earlier told jurors the "damage was done" when Ellie fell down the
stairs while playing with new puppy Minnie weeks before she died. Her
death was probably his fault because he subsequently failed to take her
to hospital - a mistake for which he paid the "ultimate price", he
said......... The Old Bailey jury has heard Mr Butler was convicted of shaking Ellie as a baby but was cleared on appeal. Ms Gray denies a charge of child cruelty." The trial continues.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-36334937