Couple convicted over the death of a toddler in Preston
Ellie May Minshull-Coyle was found tied face down in her cot
A woman and her ex-boyfriend have been cleared of the manslaughter of a toddler who was tied down in her bed, but have been found guilty of causing or allowing her death.
Lauren Coyle, 19, and Reece Hitchcott, 20, were found not guilty at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday of the manslaughter of Coyle's 19-month-old daughter Ellie-May Minshull Coyle.
After almost seven-and-a-half hours of deliberations, the jury found the pair guilty of causing or allowing her death, one count of child cruelty by caging'' the child in her bed, and another count of child cruelty by restraining her in the bed.
Their lodger, Connor Kirby, 20, of Octavia Court, Huyton, Liverpool, was cleared of all of the charges.
Ellie-May was found dead at the couple's home in Preston, Lancashire, on March 23 last year.
The trial heard that the toddler's purple Frozen bed at the two-bedroom flat in Ward Street, Lostock Hall, was turned into a cage'', with its open sides enclosed by the slatted sides of a cot lashed together with ligatures and electrical flex and tied to the bed frame.
Sheets and bedding were placed over the sides to prevent her seeing outside, no lights were working inside her bedroom, and a mattress and sheet were also covering the window, the court was told.
Ellie-May was alleged to have been bound to the bed face-down.
There were also marks on the child's wrists and ankles, suggesting she had been tied to the cage'', the jury heard.
A post-mortem examination concluded the youngster's death was caused by forcible restraint by ligatures in a face down position complicated by hyperthermia''.
Coyle, of Collins Road, Bamber Bridge, Preston, said the bed had been converted by Hitchcott, of The Fieldings, Fulwood, Preston, with the aim of getting the toddler into a routine of sleeping through the night.
She told the court that Ellie-May, her daughter by ex-boyfriend John Minshull, was her world''.
The case was adjourned for sentencing at a later date.
Granting Coyle and Hitchcott bail, judge Mr Justice Dove said: That is no indication whatsoever as to what the likely sentence might be.''
Brett Gerrity, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: This is a tragic case in which a young and innocent child was treated in the worst possible way by those who should have kept her safe from harm.
During the trial the prosecution proved that, by restraining Ellie-May in her bed, or knowing that she had been restrained in such a way, Lauren Coyle and Reece Hitchcott wilfully contributed to or directly caused her untimely death.
Throughout the case the defendants denied responsibility for causing her death and blamed each other, but today the jury have found the child's mother and her partner guilty of causing her death and neglecting her.
I would like to express my sympathy to Ellie-May's family and loved ones.'