A couple is on trial for causing the “entirely avoidable” death of their baby daughter while evading authorities, a court has heard.
Constance Marten, 37, and Mark Gordon, 50, are accused of manslaughter by gross negligence in the death of their newborn daughter, Victoria, who was found dead in a shed in Brighton in early 2023.
In his opening statement at the Old Bailey retrial, prosecutor Tom Little KC described the case as involving the “entirely avoidable death of a young baby.”
The couple allegedly kept the birth of their daughter a secret after their four older children were taken into care. On January 5, 2023, after their car caught fire on a motorway in Greater Manchester, they went on the run with the baby. They traveled across England by taxi, racking up thousands of pounds in fares, jurors were told.
The couple’s journey took them from Harwich to Colchester in Essex, then to east London, before heading to the South Downs, where they “went off grid” and camped in a “flimsy” tent.
Mr. Little told the court that Marten, who came from a wealthy family with a trust fund, had the means to buy whatever was necessary for the baby. However, after buying a buggy, the couple allegedly discarded it and instead placed the baby in a Lidl shopping bag for life, where she spent some time.
On January 8, 2023, the couple began camping in a tent. They were next seen four days later at a Texaco garage, where Marten bought snacks with cash, but there was no sign of the baby. Mr. Little told the jury: “You will have to consider if the baby had died from hypothermia or suffocation in the dangerous sleeping conditions, or whether she was still alive but her fate was sealed by being carried in a shopping bag.”
After the baby died, the couple continued to live rough, scavenging for food while carrying the baby’s body in the same Lidl bag. The child’s decomposed body was found by police a few days after the couple was arrested on February 27, 2023, in Golf Drive, Brighton.
In a police interview, Marten claimed the baby died after she fell asleep with her under her coat. She said the baby had “ample clothes” when they decided to “save her from the services” by living off the grid, which Mr. Little described as a lie. Gordon agreed with Marten’s version of events, claiming the tragedy was “something nobody could have ever anticipated.”
However, jurors were told that the risks of their actions were clear, and the couple had been warned before about the dangers of living in a tent with a baby.
Mr. Little said: “They put their relationship and views of life before the life of a little baby girl. Instead of acting in the best interests of a vulnerable child, they decided they knew best.”
He added that rather than providing warmth, shelter, food, and safety, the couple chose to live in dangerous conditions in the winter, depriving the baby of essential care.
The prosecutor highlighted the risks of hypothermia and suffocation that arose from the couple’s decision to camp in the South Downs in poor weather. He said their “grossly negligent and obviously dangerous conduct” directly led to the baby’s death.
Mr. Little continued: “After the baby died, the defendants did not come forward. Instead, they continued to hide, carrying the baby’s body in a shopping bag covered in rubbish, leaving it in a disused shed.”
Jurors were also informed that the couple had previously been convicted of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice.
The couple, who have no fixed address, deny manslaughter and a second charge of causing or allowing the death of a child between January 4 and February 27, 2023.
Gordon was not present in the courtroom but may join the proceedings later via video link.
Judge Mark Lucraft KC warned jurors not to conduct their own research or make any judgments before hearing all the evidence.
The retrial is expected to last up to eight weeks.
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