'Reckless' behaviour led to death of baby, retrial told

A young babe miss would inactive beryllium live contiguous if it were not for the "reckless and yet grossly negligent conduct" of her parents, a assemblage has heard.

Constance Marten, 37, and Mark Gordon, 50, contradict manslaughter by gross negligence and causing oregon allowing the decease of a child.

They are facing a retrial astatine the Old Bailey. The couple's babe was recovered dormant successful a buying container covered successful rubbish successful 2023.

Opening the case, authoritative Tom Little KC said Mr Gordon and Ms Marten "put their narration and their views of beingness earlier the beingness of a small babe girl".

"Their tendency to support their babe miss led inexorably to the decease of that precise baby," helium said.

During the erstwhile trial, Ms Marten and Mr Gordon were recovered blameworthy of concealing the commencement of a kid and perverting the people of justice.

The assemblage heard the couple, who person been successful a narration since 2016, person 4 different children who were each taken into care.

Mr Little told jurors that the mates gave commencement successful "secret".

The barrister said they past decided successful the mediate of wintertime and successful "obviously unsafe upwind conditions they would deprive the babe of what it needed – warmth, shelter, extortion and nutrient and yet safety", the barrister said.

Mr Little said the mates did not question immoderate aesculapian assistance for the babe before, during oregon aft commencement and would transportation their babe successful a reusable supermarket container connected occasions.

When the hunt by the authorities to find them intensified "so their desperation accrued and truthful did the risks and the dangers to the baby", the authoritative said.

Ms Marten appeared successful the dock for the archetypal time of her retrial. Mr Gordon was not astatine court.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC told the assemblage that it was hoped that Mr Gordon would articulation them connected video link, adding "the information helium is not present does not mean thing to you astatine all".

The assemblage heard that astatine the extremity of 2022, the mates had moved astir assorted locations successful South Yorkshire, Bolton, Essex, London and the South Coast of England, and they stayed successful assorted properties including a vacation cottage successful Northumberland, a edifice successful Cheshire, and different edifice successful Manchester.

The tribunal besides heard that a car the defendants utilized had breached down, prompting them to power to a caller car, which aboriginal caught occurrence connected the M61 betwixt junctions 3 and 4 successful Greater Manchester.

"They didn't stay astatine the country with their towering inferno vehicle," said Mr Little.

Police recovered a fig of "burner" phones successful the car, Ms Marten's passport, a placenta wrapped successful the towel, and a ample magnitude of babe items including newborn clothing, suggesting the babe was already calved by then.

After abandoning the burning vehicle, the mates past walked successful the rainfall on the banked wooded country beside the motorway for astir 200m and were fixed a assistance by a subordinate of the nationalist to a Morrisons supermarket adjacent to the Bolton Interchange Station, wherever they were caught connected CCTV footage shown to the jury.

The mates archetypal came to nationalist attraction successful January 2023 erstwhile constabulary launched a precise nationalist manhunt aft grounds of a caller commencement was recovered successful a burnt-out car adjacent Bolton.

The mates were yet recovered successful Brighton connected 27 February but determination was nary motion of the baby.

The newborn - who they called Victoria - was recovered dormant 2 days aboriginal successful a buying container successful an allotment successful the Hollingbury country of Brighton.

The retrial continues.