Key facts
- Constance Marten has been granted permission to appeal her 14-year jail sentence.
- She was convicted of the gross negligence manslaughter of her newborn daughter, Victoria.
- Marten and her partner, Mark Gordon, were on the run to prevent their baby being taken into care.
- Baby Victoria died in a tent on the South Downs in January 2023.
- Marten and Gordon were also convicted of child cruelty, concealing the birth of a child, and perverting the course of justice.
Aristocrat Constance Marten has been granted permission to appeal her 14-year jail sentence for the manslaughter of her baby daughter, Victoria. Marten, 39, and her partner, convicted rapist Mark Gordon, 52, were on the run when their baby died in a tent on the South Downs in January 2023. They had fled authorities to prevent Victoria being taken into care, as four other siblings had been previously.
Marten and Gordon were found guilty of manslaughter, child cruelty, concealing the birth of a child, and perverting the course of justice following two trials. Judge Mark Lucraft KC jailed them both for 14 years, with Gordon receiving an additional four years on extended licence. Marten has now been granted permission to appeal her sentence and has renewed her application to appeal her gross negligence manslaughter conviction. A court date is yet to be set.
The prosecution argued that baby Victoria died from hypothermia due to exposure to cold stress, rejecting the defendants' claims of accidental smothering. Judge Lucraft noted the defendants' arrogance and neglect, stating they gave little thought to the baby's care. The couple were arrested in Brighton after a seven-week manhunt that began when their car burst into flames near Bolton. Their baby's remains were later found in a disused shed.