Constance Marten and Mark Gordon deny all the charges
By Helena Wilkinson at the Old Bailey
BBC News
A pathologist has told the Old Bailey that it was not possible to determine how Constance Marten and Mark Gordon’s new-born baby died.
Dr Nat Cary said their baby could have died from the cold or co-sleeping, but the “formal pathological cause of death was recorded as unascertained”.
Ms Marten, 36, and Mark Gordon, 49, deny manslaughter by gross negligence of their baby Victoria.
She was found dead in a Lidl “bag for life” in a shed in Brighton on 1 March.
Giving evidence on Thursday, Dr Cary told jurors a joint post-mortem examination was undertaken with a paediatric pathologist two days after baby Victoria’s body was found.
He said that there was no evidence of natural disease or a congenital condition that could have caused the baby’s death, nor were there any injuries on the baby consistent with any form of assault or restraint.
Dr Cary told the jury on the cause of death: “I can tell you more about what it is not than what it is”.
The pathologist said: “A number of causes have been ruled out.
“Really when you start to take into account the circumstances, which is really a matter for the jury, hypothermia, being out in a cold environment, is a very important cause of death”.
He said: “The other would be co-sleeping, sharing facilities with another person where overheating may apply or rebreathing, breathing in expired air.
But Dr Cary added: “It’s fair to say none of that is provable. You cannot do a blood test”.
Dr Cary said there were no apparent signs of old or recent injuries during an external examination, adding he could not determine when the baby died.
When cross-examined by Mr Gordon’s lawyer, John Femi-Ola KC put to the pathologist that it was “important not to guess” about possible causes of death since the pathological cause of death was unascertained.
“Absolutely”, Dr Cary replied.
The barrister responded: “On the one hand you say it could be overheating, on the other hand it could be too cold. You simply have no evidence to support either”.
“Yes that’s true”, the pathologist said.
In court, jurors were shown a replica of the red Lidl bag that baby Victoria was found in, which had sunflower, lemon and pepper motifs.
They heard that the couples’ sleeping bags were rated for “late spring on early autumn”.
As well as manslaughter of their baby, Ms Marten and Mr Gordon are also accused of four other offences: cruelty to their baby; concealment of the baby’s birth; causing or allowing her death; and perverting the course of justice by concealing the body.
