- Gordon McKay shook Hayley Davidson to death at his home in Buckhaven, Fife
- Court heard he told Hayley's mother, Catherine, he shook her three or four times
- Doctors found a brain bleed consistent with a significant head trauma
- Hayley was diagnosed with non-survivable head injury and died three days later
A mother was having 'intimate relations' with the man convicted of killing her baby at the moment she was told doctors were ready to switch off the child's life support.
Hayley Davidson was engaged in an act with former soldier Gordon McKay in the family room of a hospital in Edinburgh where her daughter was being treated when they were interrupted.
McKay, 38, had shaken Haley Davidson violently at his home in Buckhaven, Fife, on Valentine's Day, 2016.
Catherine Davidson, pictured, went into the family room of the children's hospital in Edinburgh to engage in 'intimate relations' with her boyfriend who had violently shaken her daughter
He denied murdering the child, but he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of culpable homicide.
Ms Davidson had left her five-month-old daughter with McKay so she could get her two older daughters ready for a day out with their grandmother.
While Ms Davidson was absent, McKay shook the infant violently causing massive damage.
After receiving a text from McKay saying 'come quick!', Miss Davidson ran to his house, which was a few doors down the road, with her daughters.
When she arrived she found McKay leaning over her baby and administering CPR.
She called an ambulance, but before it had arrived, McKay told Miss Davidson that he had left Hayley alone to run a bath but found her unresponsive on a beanbag, so he shook her.
In response to police questioning at the hospital, he told doctors he had shaken the baby three or four times, and described her head as 'whipping backwards and forwards'.
Prompted by his disclosures, doctors carried out scans which indicated a bleed around Hayley's brain consistent with a significant head trauma, and in particular a shaking type injury.
Medical experts diagnosed a non-survivable head injury and on February 17, after brain stem tests confirmed no activity, care was withdrawn and Hayley died.
He told Catherine Davidson that he had shaken her daughter Hayley, pictured, three or four times and that her head had been 'whipping backwards and forwards'
The High Court heard that Miss Davidson, pictured, had been in an 'obsessive' relationship with McKay after she broke up with Hayley's father
Advocate depute Jane Farquharson, prosecuting, told how Miss Davidson had developed an 'obsessive' relationship with the accused after splitting with Hayley's father.
She said the pair denied they were seeing each other and taking drugs but forensic tests showed they had smoked cannabis together with Hayley in the room the night before the youngster was fatally injured.
Miss Farquharson also revealed that Hayley had previously had hospital treatment for a broken arm on New Year's Day 2016 - three months into McKay's relationship with her mother.
The court previously heard McKay, pictured, had previously broken Hayley's arm on New Year's Day 2016 - less than eight weeks before her death in February 2016
She said: 'Gordon McKay took responsibility for what he described as the "accident" that caused it. His account was deemed consistent with her injury and the clinical team did not view the fracture as suspicious.
'Social services were notified and did not intervene. Fife protocol has now changed as a result of this case.
'Examination of Hayley upon her admission on February 14, 2016, during the time she spent in hospital prior to her death and scrutiny of the various X-rays and scans taken at this time, revealed a number of healing fractures over various parts of her body and of different ages.
'The process of reviewing X-rays has since changed in Fife and all X-rays of infants under 12 months will now be viewed by a paediatric radiologist.'
Miss Ferguson said the baby's mother 'seemed more concerned for the welfare of, and attentive to, Mr McKay' than tending to the needs of her critically inured daughter.
After telling doctors at the hospital what he had done they discovered a bleed around little Hayley's brain consistent with a significant head trauma. She died three days later
She said: 'In a strongly worded police statement, a family liaison officer describes interrupting "intimate relations" within the family room when she went through to advise Mrs Davidson that Hayley's life support machine was about to be switched off.
'At the time of Hayley's death Mrs Davidson held her daughter in her arms. After a few minutes she indicated she needed to be with Mr McKay.'
Solicitor advocate John Scott, defending, said McKay - who has two sons of his own living with his former partner in Inverness - was an ex-soldier who had served four years in the army, including duty in the Middle East.
Gordon McKay, pictured outside court, admitted shaking his girlfriend's five-month-old daughter to death while looking after her at his home in Buckhaven, Fife, on Valentine's Day 2016
He said the defence was in the process of obtaining a psychiatric report to show whether he suffered PTSD as a result of his military service.
Deferring sentence, Lord Uist told McKay: 'You have plead guilty to the grave crime of causing the death of a baby by shaking her.
'As Mr Scott has recognised on your behalf, this is bound to result in a custodial sentence.
'I must, however, before proceeding to sentence, obtain a criminal justice social work report on you as you have never previously served a custodial sentence.
'I am prepared to continue bail, but this must not be taken by you as a sign that a custodial sentence will not follow.'
Adjourning the case for background reports, judge Lord Uist also told McKay he would pass sentence at the High Court in Edinburgh on Thursday May 10.
He continued McKay's bail in the meantime to allow him to spend time with his two sons.
Miss Davidson, pictured, held Hayley in her arms as they turned off her life support machine
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