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British aristocrat Constance Marten and her partner, Mark Gordon, have been sentenced to 14 years in prison over the death of their newborn daughter.
Judge Mark Lucraft KC sentenced the pair at the Old Bailey in London on Monday after they were convicted of gross negligence manslaughter in July.
Gordon, 51, was handed a further four-year period on extended license, and Marten, 38, will be required to serve at least two thirds of her sentence before she is released.
- Constance Marten and Mark Gordon were sentenced to 14 years for gross negligence manslaughter over their newborn's death.
- Their daughter, Victoria, died of hypothermia after they fled social services and slept in freezing conditions in a tent.
- Victoria was found dead in a supermarket bag abandoned in a Brighton allotment after her birth was concealed.
- The judge condemned the couple's neglect, lack of remorse, and use of inadequate supplies despite significant financial resources.
Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have been sentenced to 14 years
Image credits: Metropolitan Police Handout via Getty Images
Their daughter, Victoria, is believed to have died of hypothermia on January 12, 2023, after the couple went on the run to evade social services in freezing conditions and slept in a tent.
Authorities had previously removed four of their children from their care following concerns for their wellbeing. The couple concealed Victoria’s birth.
Victoria, thought to be just weeks old, was found dead in a supermarket bag, filled with rubbish and abandoned in an allotment on March 1 in Brighton.
“The death of your baby was the result of obvious neglect by you,” Judge Lucraft said during his sentencing remarks.
He told the court that Victoria was “exposed to significant cold stress” and rejected claims by Marten and Gordon that the baby was wearing a jacket and a hat.
Image credits: BBC
“Where there is video footage, it shows the baby clad in little more than a babygrow,” he said.
Neither parent cooperated with police after their arrest on February 27 as officers tried to locate baby Victoria.
“Your silence at that stage of events is highly significant,” Judge Lucraft told the court.
Judge Lucraft further noted that the supplies purchased by Marten and Gordon, such as a tent and sleeping bag, were inadequate for the climate.
“There has been no genuine expression of remorse from either of you,” Judge Marten told the couple.
“Whilst there have been expressions of sorrow about the death throughout, you’ve adopted the stance of seeking to blame everyone else other than yourselves for what happened.”
Image credits: Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty Images
Victoria’s existence was only discovered by police when they were called to a car fire on the M61 freeway near Bolton on January 5, 2023.
Officers discovered a placenta in the burnt-out vehicle, and a massive search operation was launched over welfare concerns.
Marten and Gordon spent thousands of pounds while traveling in taxis hundreds of miles daily to avoid being caught by police, prosecutors said.
Their four children were removed from their care when a suspected domestic assault incident in 2019 left Marten with a shattered spleen.
Judge Lucraft told the court that the couple had significant financial resources – notably Marten’s trust fund – to take care of their daughter but failed to utilize it.
Police found baby Victoria’s body on March 1, 2023
Image credits: Leon Neal/Getty Images
“To most right thinking people, their children are the most precious beings to be nurtured and to be cared for,” he remarked, describing the couple’s conduct as serious and grave neglect.
During sentencing, Judge Lucraft recounted Gordon’s violent past and said it was relevant to the current sentence imposed.
Gordon was convicted of the rape of a woman in the U.S. when he was just 14 in 1989 and served 22 years in prison before being sent back to the U.K.
He held the woman hostage for more than four hours, armed with hedge clippers as her young children slept in the home.
In 2017, he assaulted two female police officers at the maternity unit in Wales after Marten gave birth to a child using a false name.
The court heard that Marten had been warned about sleeping in a tent with a baby and falling asleep with a baby on top of her.
The Crown Prosecution Service released a statement welcoming the sentencing.
“We were determined to seek justice for baby Victoria and honor her tragically short life,” Jaswant Narwal, Chief Crown Prosecutor, said.
“Marten and Gordon used different antics to frustrate and delay court proceedings, doing everything in their power to try and delay facing responsibility for their actions.
“No child should have had its life cut short in this preventable way. I hope today’s sentences provide a sense of justice and comfort to all those affected by this tragic case.”
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