A WOMAN and baby girl died from carbon monoxide poisoning after inhaling smoke during a fire at their home, a murder trial heard yesterday.
The State Pathologist, Dr John Harbison, said Mrs Esther McCann and 18 month old Jessica "would have passed into a state of unconsciousness, rather than feeling the effects of the fire".
He was giving evidence at the Central Criminal Court on the eighth day of the trial of Mr Francis McCann (36), a publican, who has pleaded not guilty to the murder of his wife, Esther (36), and Jessica at their home in Butterfield Avenue, Rathfarnham, Dublin, on September 4th, 1992.
The jury has heard that Jessica was a blood relative of the accused man but not a child of his marriage to Esther. The prosecution has claimed that Mr McCann arranged the fire because he did not want to tell his wife why the Adoption Board had refused the couple's application to adopt Jessica.
Dr Harbison told prosecuting counsel Mr Kenneth Mills SC he carried out a post mortem examination of Mrs McCann and Jessica. Mrs McCann's body showed signs of burning and he found soot on her tongue. He also found heavy soot deposits in her airways. There was 58.4 per cent carbon monoxide in her blood, which was within the lethal range. She had an abnormally small thyroid gland which, without treatment, might have caused her to be sluggish.
He concluded her death was due to carbon monoxide poisoning associated with inhalation of fumes from the fire.
Dr Harbison said Jessica was considerably less burned than Mrs McCann. He found no sign of injury on the body other than those caused by the heat of the fire. The airways showed heavy black streaking of soot and there was a lethal 68.7 per cent carbon monoxide level in the blood.
Jessica died from inhalation of smoke as indicated by soot in her nose, throat and air passages and a lethal level of carbon monoxide.
Earlier, gardai gave evidence that the accused man, who owned The Cooperage pub in Blessington, Co Wicklow, had complained about receiving threatening phone calls at the pub and his home.
Mr Bert McCann, his brother, said he was a partner in the pub. In August 1992, his brother told him he had been receiving telephone calls and threats. The calls mentioned the pub's insurance and that he had a wife and child.
Cross examined by Mr Barry White SC, for the defence, Mr McCann said he had returned from a holiday in Florida on September 5th, the day after the fire. He had told gardai he thought Frank was in a shocked state". Mr McCann agreed with Mr White that he was "a partner in name only" and for the purposes of a limited company.
The trial continues today.