In the early morning hours of July 5, 2019, Michael Cawley left his two-year-old daughter, Santina, with his girlfriend, Karen Harrington, at her apartment in Cork, Ireland. Michael and Karen had argued that morning, but Michael had no reason not to trust the woman he knew to be excellent with children. Michael couldn’t have predicted that he would return two hours later to find Santina naked under a blanket on the floor, bruised, bloody, and unresponsive.

This is the story of a happy baby with red hair, bright blue eyes, and a big, contagious smile who brought joy into the lives of everyone who knew her. It’s also the story of a woman whose unthinkably horrific actions baffled an entire country, leaving everyone with the same unanswerable question: Why?

This is part one of the heartbreaking story of Santina Cawley. 

Bridget’s July 2019 interview with Neil Prendeville: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcAgqADP9_M

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This podcast is researched, written, hosted, edited, and produced by Laine.

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