UK - Constance Marten & Mark Gordon charged, Newborn (found deceased), Bolton Greater Manchester, 5 Jan 2023 #4

[iamshadow21]

IMBW but I think in the US the person who carries out the post mortem is called a coroner? In the UK that is done by a pathologist. The coroner is an official, usually a lawyer.

Coroner is an elected position in many places in the US, too. It is not always required for a coroner to have a medical degree. (Example: in the Moscow murders in Idaho, the coroner is a nurse and a lawyer. The autopsies were done by a medical examiner.)

 

[Observant-ADHD-ENFP-BSc]

Ok here we are, A coroner in the UK is like a specialist judge for certain deaths.

'Forensic pathologists have a set of overlapping duties with coroners around finding the true causes of death, but forensic pathologists are able to perform medical operations while coroners may specialize in the legal paperwork and law enforcement side of a death'
The Difference Between a Coroner and a Forensic Pathologist

 

[azure]

Thank you all! I was so confused, the use of the word coroner made it sound like the body was put in a freezer and not examined until the trial was over.

 

[Alyce]

Daily Courtroom List for Friday 31 March 2023​

FINAL 1 CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT Court 1 - sitting at 09:45 am THE COMMON SERJEANT OF LONDON​ Plea and Trial Preparation T20237104 GORDON Mark A 47CC0611323 SUSWM CPS MARTEN Constance 47CC0611323 DTA - ALL PARTIES TO ATTEND IN PERSON

www.courtserve.net

 

[JennieM]

I hope they don't let them sit next to each other again!

 

[Alyce]

I hope they don't let them sit next to each other again!

Blowing kisses !

 

[CaptainNancy]

Be interesting to see if they enter a plea tomorrow.

I would think their solicitors/ barristers will have advised them against kiss blowing antics. But who knows if they will listen.

I wonder what happens if one pleads guilty and another innocent?

 

[BaronessWombat]

It will be interesting to see how they will be after a few weeks in jail. Maybe more cooperative?

 

[Alyce]

The pair are due back in the dock at the Old Bailey on Friday, where they may be asked to enter pleas to the charges.

the couple are accused of manslaughter by having “unlawfully killed baby Victoria”.

It is said the birth was concealed between January 27 and February 27,
and they are accused of “doing an act or acts by concealing the death of baby Victoria which had a tendency to pervert the course of public justice.”

Marten is being represented in the legal proceedings by leading barrister Lewis Power KC.

Constance Marten to stand trial next year over baby death charge

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend will face a trial next January over allegations they killed a new-born baby girl and left the body in an abandoned shed.

www.standard.co.uk

 

[Cuko]

No reference to the Old Bailey court appearance in U.K. TV news channel programmes this morning. Very unusual. Would normally be a large crowd of journalists and photographers outside and inside the court.

 

[Cuko]

UPDATE:

Constance Marten to stand trial next year over baby death charge — The Standard

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend will face a trial next January over allegations they killed a new-born baby girl and left the body in an abandoned shed.

apple.news

 

[gerbil]

UPDATE:

Constance Marten to stand trial next year over baby death charge — The Standard

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend will face a trial next January over allegations they killed a new-born baby girl and left the body in an abandoned shed.

apple.news

Pleas to be heard in August this year.

 

[gerbil]

I would think their solicitors/ barristers will have advised them against kiss blowing antics. But who knows if they will listen?

(SBM)

If they were given advice, apparently they didn't listen

"The pair appeared in the dock of Courtroom 1 at the Old Bailey on Friday morning, greeting each other affectionately as they took their seats."

Constance Marten to stand trial next year over baby death charge

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend will face a trial next January over allegations they killed a new-born baby girl and left the body in an abandoned shed.

www.standard.co.uk

 

[iamshadow21]

UPDATE:

Constance Marten to stand trial next year over baby death charge — The Standard

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her boyfriend will face a trial next January over allegations they killed a new-born baby girl and left the body in an abandoned shed.

apple.news

The pair appeared in the dock of Courtroom 1 at the Old Bailey on Friday morning, greeting each other affectionately as they took their seats.

Still cordial between them, then.


Marten, whose legal fees are being privately paid, wore a cream and black-patterned blouse for the hearing, while Gordon was dressed in a prison-issue grey tracksuit.

I wonder if he's going to have a suit, or at least a dress shirt, by the time they get to trial. It shouldn't make a difference, but it does.

MOO

 

[wowiezowie]

January 2024?!? Jeez, that's a long wait. Why such a huge gap between charges and the court case?

 

[Cuko]

January 2024?!? Jeez, that's a long wait. Why such a huge gap between charges and the court case?

Maybe because the U.K. court system has a huge backlog? JMO

 

[Nikynoo]

Maybe because the U.K. court system has a huge backlog? JMO

I must admit, that is a lot longer than I expected. It could be that forensics could be holding up the timelines.

 

[Zuleika]

I must admit, that is a lot longer than I expected. It could be that forensics could be holding up the timelines.

Yes that is a possibility , the backlog of inquests is very long in some places too although not implying the one on Victoria will be .

 

[JennieM]

Constance Marten and Mark Gordon will stand trial in January 2024 over the alleged manslaughter of a baby girl.

The infant's remains were found in a plastic bag under nappies in a shed in Brighton following a 53-day missing persons investigation.

The couple appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday. They did not enter pleas and were remanded in custody.

They have also been charged with concealing a child's birth and perverting the course of justice.

The pair, who have no fixed address, spoke only to confirm their names and dates of birth.

Judge Richard Marks set a plea and case management hearing for 18 August, with the defendants to appear by video link.

He scheduled 2 January as a provisional trial date. The case is expected to last between four and six weeks.

Constance Marten and Mark Gordon: Couple to stand trial over baby's death

Constance Marten and Mark Gordon are accused of manslaughter over the death of baby Victoria

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[rightsaidfred]

There's backlogs in the courts for a variety of reasons - COVID created a huge backlog, barristers strikes last year will have delayed some trials, and more insidious reasons like poor maintenance putting courtrooms out of action

Five steps to help fix chaos in our courts

75,000 defendants awaiting crown court trial - magistrates court delays in addition to that. While some will have been bailed, others are remanded in prison for extended periods for crimes they will ultimately be found not guilty of; meanwhile they lose their jobs, often their homes, and sometimes their children too

Almost 75,000 defendants awaiting crown court trial, says head of CPS

Someone mentioned forensic delays; there is an acute shortage of paediatric pathologists
File on 4

Honestly I'm not remotely surprised the trial won't happen for 8 months.

I'm slightly more surprised that CM hasn't made an application for bail after her barrister's comments at the last court hearing.