The Trial of Louise Woodward TV - The Killer Nanny: Did She Do It? TV - 60 Minutes Australia: Louise Woodward TV -
Almost 25 year ago a young British au pair in America was charged with murdering the baby in her care. The trial of teenager Louise Woodward became one of the biggest ever courtroom battles. At its heart a debate around the controversial issue of shaken baby syndrome. It’s a case that split opinion on both sides of the Atlantic. The Trial of Louise Woodward, ITV 2021
6th March 1997: A Grand Jury indicts Louise on a charge of first degree murder. If convicted, she could face life in prison without parole. ibid. captions
Louise labelled guilty in the court of public opinion lost before the trial started. The au pair agency that recruited Louise paid for a high-profile legal team to defend her. ibid.
With Sky’s live daily broadcasts, the British public were able to watch Matthew’s mother Deborah Eappen give her testimony as it happened. ibid.
Louise Woodward guilty to second-degree murder. ibid.
The trial was over but the media coverage remained unrelenting. And protests about Louise Woodward’s innocence sprang up immediately. ibid.
Manslaughter, and she walks. ibid. Boston Globe front page
The Massachusetts Supreme Court upheld Judge Zobel’s decision by a 4-3 majority. Louise Woodward was free to return home. ibid. caption
A case that divided two nations … What really happened to Matthew Eappen? The Killer Nanny: Did She Do It? I: The Case for the Prosecution, Channel 4 2022
They were adorable. Brendan was very advanced for his age. And you could hold a conversation with him. He was very talkative. And Maddy was a very sweet baby. He was smily, playful. And they were just beautiful children. ibid. Louise Woodward, Panorama, BBC 1998
4th February 1997 16.07: Matthew Eappen is admitted to Boston Children’s Hospital. It is decided 8-month-old Matthew needs emergency brain surgery. ibid. caption
The child received serious injuries … She told me that she tossed him on the bed … ‘Yeah, I was a bit frustrated’ … She took the child into the bathroom and she dropped him on the floor … ‘Maybe I was a little rough with him’ … She may have shaken the baby. ibid. Bill Byrne, lead detective Woodward case
9th February 1997: Matthew’s parents take the decision to turn off his life support machine. ibid. caption
6th October 1997: Louise Woodward stands trial for the murder of Matthew Eappen. ibid.
Many convictions for shaken baby syndrome are reversed. You just can’t rely on them. ibid. medical expert
The evidence in this case is going to show you that that never happened. The Killer Nanny: Did She Do It? II: The Case for the Defence, defence statement
If you assume the prosecution’s theory to be correct for the sake of argument, and that Louise Woodward, this tiny person, these tiny hands, had shaken the living daylights out of this 22 pound butterball of a baby, you’d expect some bruising. ibid. medical expert
What I saw was that the injury was not a fresh injury. So no matter what they say it could not have happened on that day … There was a fracture and evidence of bone healing which meant that it was an older fracture. ibid. doctor
She had a plus-12 which is definitely well above the amount necessary to indicate truthfulness. The confidence in that result is at least 90%. ibid. lie-detector expert
The defence want the jury to hear Louise’s side of the story. Controversially, Louise and her team decide that she will take the stand. ibid. caption
I was just scared and inhibited. ibid. Louise
31st October 1997: Louise returns to court to be sentenced. The Killer Nanny: Did She Do It? III
After trial I began to have some concern about my testimony. ibid. prosecution doctor
In the state of Massachusetts a judge has the power to re-assess the jury’s verdict. ibid.
I felt horror when Judge Zobel changed the verdict. ibid. juror
Susan and Gary Woodward had sold the story to the Daily Mail for £40,000. ibid. medical expert
The circumstances in which the defendant acted were characterized by confusion, inexperience, frustration, immaturity and some anger, but not malice (in the legal sense). ibid. Judge Zobel
We go inside one of the most controversial court cases of all time. In 1997 eight-month-old Matthew Eappen was in the care of his young British nanny Louise Woodward when she made a panicked call to emergency services claiming he was unresponsive. Tragically, he died a few days later. 60 Minutes Australia: Louise Woodward, Nine Network 2022
What followed was an astonishing trial the outcome of which remains as disputed today as it was 25 years ago. ibid.
Is Louise Woodward a killer nanny or the victim of flawed justice? ibid.
6th October 1997: After 8 months in custody, Louise Woodward’s trial began in Boston, Massachusetts. ibid. caption
Louise Woodward was the first British person whose trial was shown live on British television. ibid.
The defence faced an uphill battle and their case rested on complicated science. ibid.
‘They pick out four names to be alternate jurors and all four of those jurors that we were targeting became alternates; all four were gone.’ ibid. Scheck
‘Louise Woodward guilty of second-degree murder.’ ibid. TV report
The trial was over but the media coverage remained unrelenting. ibid.
Manslaughter, and she walks. ibid. The Boston Globe front page