Couple who put stillborn baby in a bin are sentenced | UK News

A woman and her boyfriend have been given community orders after prosecutors accepted she did not illegally abort her baby.

Warning: This article contains distressing content.

Sophie Harvey, 25, was due to stand trial with Elliot Benham in February on charges she took abortion pills online a month after the 24-week cut-off when she was 19.

The couple had accepted they bought the medication, but Harvey insisted she did not take them and gave birth to a stillborn baby in her bathroom in September 2018.

Harvey had previously described to Gloucester Crown Court how she was confused after going into labour and wrapped the baby in a towel before placing it into a bin.

At a further hearing on Wednesday, they both admitted to a new charge of conspiracy to procure a poison with intent to procure a miscarriage.

Harvey, of St Mary’s Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, and Benham, of Wingfield, Swindon, Wiltshire, had already accepted a charge of concealing the birth of a child.

But on Wednesday, the Crown Prosecution Service said it decided not to pursue other charges following “careful reflection”.

These included procuring a poison, procuring a miscarriage by poison and perverting the course of justice – which they denied and were ordered to lie on file.

“We recognise the profoundly painful circumstances surrounding this case, which our prosecutors have approached with sensitivity and care,” a spokesperson said.

“The defendants have pleaded guilty to two offences, and after careful reflection we have concluded that it is not in the public interest to pursue further charges.”

‘Absence of compassion’

The couple had stood trial at the court in May this year, but the jury was discharged after an application by their lawyers citing inaccurate reports of the proceedings by the BBC.

Prosecutors had sought a new trial and a date had been fixed for February next year.

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Passing sentence, Judge Ian Lawrie KC, the Recorder of Gloucester, handed the pair a 18-month community order.

Harvey was also given a mental health treatment requirement, while Benham was told to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and both must pay a £114 surcharge.

“The loss of that life was a tragedy, and that small child was treated by being wrapped in a towel and placed in a bin,” the judge said, describing an “absence of compassion and humanity”.

“The impact upon your lives has been traumatic and I am sure this will continue for some time. If you can, and I doubt it, put it all behind you and get on with your lives.”