Constance Marten granted appeal for baby's death sentence

Aristocrat Constance Marten has been granted permission to appeal the 14-year jail sentence she received for her baby’s death. Marten, 39, and Mark Gordon, 52, were found guilty of manslaughter, child cruelty, concealing the birth of a child, and perverting the course of justice. Their baby daughter, Victoria, died in January 2023 from hypothermia while the couple were in hiding on the South Downs.

Background to the conviction

The Old Bailey trial heard that Marten and Gordon had fled authorities in an attempt to prevent Victoria being taken into care, a situation faced by four of their other children. Judge Mark Lucraft KC stated that the baby died from hypothermia after exposure to significant cold stress. He dismissed the defendants' claims of accidental smothering. The judge told the defendants during sentencing that they had displayed arrogance and treated Victoria with neglect of the most serious type, failing to give adequate thought to her care.

Police initiated a nationwide search after the couple's car was found burned out near Bolton on January 5 2023. The pair travelled across England, living off-grid and sleeping in a tent where Victoria died. They were arrested in Brighton after a seven-week manhunt. Their baby was later found dead in a disused shed.

Marten has also renewed her application to appeal her gross negligence manslaughter conviction. A court date for the appeal has not yet been set.