No supporting evidence in Maya case: Lawyer

The lawyer of the stepmother accused of causing the death of 4-year-old Maya, based his defence on lack of supporting evidence of the crime and social presumption associated with a cruel stepmother against a child from the husband’s previous marriage. The Dubai Prosecution referred to the court, OY, 24, Jordanian housewife on accusation of assault and causing the death of her husband’s little daughter. However, the prosecution failed to support the accusation with evidences, the lawyer told the jury presided by Judge Maher Salama Al Mahdi. “All were driven by a social norm associated with stepmothers that assault and hate her husband’s children from another marriage. Investigations were incomplete in regard of the assumed hatred and assaults. None of the witnesses did testify that my client used to beat her husband’s children who had been in her custody for seven months. This includes the children’s mother who testified that she used to meet her children and spend time with them sometimes twice a week. Should the accused beat the children and the victim, the children would have told their mother. The mother would have noticed traces of the assaults on their bodies of on the victim’s body in particular,” he argued. The children did freely communicate with their close ones including their mother and father and the school and neighbours. If they were subject to physical assault, this would have been manifested physically and psychologically. The mother did not notice any assault traces on Maya’s body. As well, her teacher did not notice any bruises of the so-claimed stepmother assaults. On the contrary the teacher testified that Maya was a student with good performance and behavior. The two maids did not see the stepmother beat the children and if there were any incident said the maids, it was disciplinary such as slaps on the hand. Such a punishment that anyone may practice against his children cannot cause death and does not leave trace even. Hearing the victim’s cries while was in the bathroom with her stepmother, does not tell that the accused was beating her. However, the elder sister testified that she ‘thinks’ that her stepmother beats her sister in the bathroom. This cannot be considered a clear-cut evidence against the accused, defenced the lawyer. “Your honour, the accusation was not proved and I defend with its invalidity. The lawyer also defended with non-completion of the medical and forensic reports. “The reports are based on unproved assumptions related to stepmother’s hatred and brutality against her husband’s children. The reports did not investigate a probability of wrong first aid that could have led to the girl’s death. The victim’s mother was attending when the girl passed away... she could have influenced the police that her husband’s new wife had assaulted and killed her daughter, argued the lawyer and so forensic doctor did not consider and investigate any other probable cause other than assault,” defended the lawyer. In addition to that, the accused had denied the accusation all through the judicial procedures. Closing his defence, the lawyer asked the jury for the acquittal of his client as an initial request and to re-investigate the case with the treating hospital via a medical committee that includes a first aid doctor. The court adjourned the case for verdict until July 16. PREVIOUS HEARINGS In a previous hearing, the dentist neighbour who was first to check on the 4-year-old Maya, who was allegedly killed by her step mother, told the Dubai Criminal Court that the fall from the bicycle could not have led to hear death. GM, 47, a Syrian dentist was rushed to the house to check on the little girl after falling from her old bicycle. “The girl was sitting on a sofa, she had a disturbed consciousness. Checking on her, I noticed a minor bruise in the girl’s head... there was no fracture in the skull. However, the girl’s skin was yellow, and her lips were blue... she was very cold and going unconscious for some minutes... her iris was not responding to light. The change of her colour and coldness prove that the girl had internal bleeding that could not be of the head injury. Her situation could not be sustained from falling from a cycle. I asked the family to rush the girl to a hospital,” testified the neighbour. I went with the family to the hospital and a pediatric doctor provided her with first aid animation. He pressed on her chest for a couple of times before giving her oxygen. The dentist refuted that the animation provided at the hospital could have caused the little girl injuries and internal bleeding in the belly as the lawyer is trying to defend. The jury listened again to the forensic doctor who responded to a report made by a medical committee. The forensic doctor insisted that the internal bleeding could alone have caused the girl’s death. “Having 500mlg of blood in her belly is not a minimal amount... she could have continued bleed