A British aristocrat and her boyfriend were sentenced to 14 years in prison on Monday after a judge found them guilty of gross negligence manslaughter in the death of their newborn daughter while the couple was on the run from authorities.
Constance Marten, 38, and Mark Gordon, 51, were also previously convicted of perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child and child cruelty at London’s Central Criminal Court in July. Gordon will serve an additional four years on an extended licence following his release.
Judge Mark Lucraft told the defendants that the baby, named Victoria, died from hypothermia after being exposed to "significant cold stress," rejecting the couple’s account that her death was a "terrible accident." "It is clear throughout the period neither of you gave much or any thought for the care or love for your baby," the judge said during sentencing.
Police launched a nationwide search after officers discovered a placenta on Jan. 5, 2023, in a burned-out car belonging to Marten and Gordon near Bolton in northwestern England. The search lasted seven weeks and concluded when detectives recovered the decomposed body of the infant in a shopping bag under rubbish in a garden shed in Brighton.
Investigators said the couple travelled across England, staying off-grid and taking measures to avoid identification, including paying hundreds of pounds in taxi fares rather than using credit cards. While on the run, they slept in a tent on the South Downs, a range of hills in southern England, where prosecutors say the baby died. CCTV footage briefly captured the infant in London wearing the teddy bear-patterned onesie in which she was later found.
Marten and Gordon were arrested in Brighton on Feb. 27, 2023. Authorities said the pair refused to disclose the baby’s whereabouts when taken into custody.
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford said in a statement after sentencing that the couple had numerous opportunities to "do the right thing" and that it was difficult to understand their decision to remain outdoors during freezing conditions rather than seek help. "Speaking personally as a father, I find it hard to comprehend how, instead of providing the warmth and care their child needed, Mark Gordon and Constance Marten chose to live outside during freezing conditions to avoid the authorities," he said.
Chief Crown Prosecutor Jaswant Narwal said prosecutors had sought justice for "baby Victoria" and stressed that no child should have had their life cut short in a preventable way. "I hope today’s sentences provide a sense of justice and comfort to all those affected by this tragic case," Narwal said.
Marten, who comes from a wealthy, aristocratic British family, had secretly given birth to Victoria after her other four children were removed by courts earlier amid concerns they were at risk of harm. Marten reportedly met Gordon while she was a drama student.
Gordon is a convicted sex offender who, according to U.S. law enforcement records, served 20 years in prison in the United States after being convicted in Florida of kidnapping and sexual battery. He was deported from the U.S. after his release.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that the couple's actions and decisions while evading authorities directly contributed to the infant's exposure and death. The court found there was sufficient evidence to convict them of gross negligence manslaughter and the related offences.
The pair were sentenced at London's Central Criminal Court, where the judge set the terms reflecting the severity of the offences and the circumstances in which Victoria died.