Constance Marten, 38, has lodged an application to appeal her conviction for the manslaughter of her newborn daughter, Victoria, following one of the UK’s most high-profile trials in recent years.
Marten and her partner Mark Gordon, 51, were found guilty earlier this year of manslaughter by gross negligence, concealing the birth of a child, and perverting the course of justice. They are due to be sentenced at the Old Bailey on September 15, with prison terms expected.
Appeal bid
Marten has applied to the Court of Appeal to challenge the manslaughter conviction.
The move follows a retrial in which jurors deliberated for more than 14 hours before unanimously convicting the pair. The first trial in 2023 ended without a verdict on manslaughter but did result in convictions for child cruelty, concealing a birth, and perverting the course of justice.
Her body was too decomposed to determine a cause of death, but prosecutors argued she either died from hypothermia or was smothered while sharing a sleeping bag with her parents in freezing conditions.
The defence claimed Victoria’s death was a tragic accident after Marten fell asleep on her.
[block_2]
Gordon’s history
During legal arguments it emerged that jurors were not told the full extent of Gordon’s violent past.
-
In 1989, at age 14, he raped a woman at knifepoint in Florida and committed aggravated battery within a month. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison and served 22 before being released.
-
In 2017, Gordon was convicted of assaulting two police officers at a Welsh maternity unit.
-
In 2019, he was suspected of domestic violence that left Marten with a shattered spleen while she was pregnant.
The family court subsequently removed the couple’s other children from their care.
[block_4]
Next steps
Both Marten and Gordon remain in custody awaiting sentencing. The Court of Appeal will now consider whether to grant permission for their appeals to proceed.
