Marten and Gordon on Trial for Newborn's Death

Couple with history of children taken into care accused of neglect leading to baby's death

Constance Marten, 36, and Mark Gordon, 49, are on trial for the death of their newborn baby, Victoria, who they claim lived for only 16 days.
The couple, who have had four other children taken into care, are accused of keeping Victoria in a shopping bag and dumping her body in a disused shed.
The defense maintains that Victoria was born on 24 December 2022 and died on 9 January 2023, and that she was kept 'warm and dry' and 'well nourished'.
The couple came to police attention when their car caught fire on the M61 on 5 January 2023, and a placenta was found in the vehicle.
A motorist who witnessed the car fire claims he saw Marten carrying a baby and that he touched the baby's head, which felt cold.