The “Best Dad Ever” T-shirt Robin Clarke wore to court was a grotesque sign of obscenity. A defenceless 19-month-old girl died because the adults entrusted with her life chose cruelty. Clarke was found guilty of murder, as Krisley Dirker never stood a chance against the violence inflicted on her by her stepfather.
It took 12 years for the justice system to record her death as murder. Medical staff described injuries no child could ever cause to themselves — injuries so severe that professionals said her swollen forehead was the worst haematoma they had ever seen. Krisley eventually died on October 17 2013, that year due to blunt force trauma to the head.
Judge Vuyokazi Noncembu, in a meticulous judgment, made clear that Clarke’s violence was not a momentary lapse of judgment but a pattern of abuse. Kristen Clarke, Krisley’s mother, was acquitted of murder but convicted of child abuse and neglect.
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