Coroner blasts Baby P scandal council over death of newborn girl with horrific injuries after social workers put her back with her parents

• Lily-Mai Saint George was born premature and spent first two months in hospital
• Six days after being discharged, she returned to hospital where she died
• The baby had suffered a head injury and 19 rib fractures in the ‘unlawful’ killing
• Police said there is insufficient evidence to charge Lily-Mai’s parents 

A coroner has blasted the ‘utterly bewildering’ decision to send a ten-week-old baby back to her parents where she died from a catalogue of injuries in the same council where Baby P died in 2007.

Lily-Mai Saint George collapsed in her family home in Tottenham on January 31, 2018, and died of her injuries two days later at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

The coroner ruled on Monday that her killing was unlawful but police said there is ‘insufficient evidence’ to charge either of her parents Darren Hurrell or Lauren Saint George.

An inquest at St Pancras Coroner’s Court heard Lily-Mai had 19 rib fractures and a serious head injury which caused her death.

Medical experts said the injuries were due to her being assaulted and that the level of force was more significant than just rough handling. 

Lily-Mai was born premature and had spent the first two months of her life in hospital, before she was discharged into her parents’ care on January 25 2018.

But just six days later she returned to hospital in a ‘critical and life-threatening’ condition. 

A coroner has blasted the ‘utterly bewildering’ decision to send a ten-week-old baby back to her parents where she died from a catalogue of injuries, St Pancras Coroner’s Court heard

A health visitor and social worker from Haringey Council had shared their concerns that the baby ‘was not safe to be left in their care of her parents’, the inquest heard.

Ms Saint George, appeared to be ‘distracted’ from the baby and left Mr Hurrell, a KFC shift manager, to carry out much of the parenting, according to witnesses.

At the inquest, Ms Saint George declined to answer questions while Mr Hurrell said Lily-Mai’s rib injuries could have been caused by CPR and he once held her leg ‘tightly’ to stop her falling.

Senior Coroner Mary Hassell questioned why the anaemic and premature baby was discharged into the parents’ care.

She said she will be making a prevention of future deaths report to Haringey Council, whose children’s services were previously criticised over the death of Baby P. 

Peter Connelly – known as Baby P – was killed following months of abuse while he was on Haringey’s ‘at risk’ register. 

Peter was identified as being at risk of neglect and had been seen on around 60 separate occasions by social workers, health visitors and others who failed to save him.

In the eight months while he was on Haringey’s child protection register he suffered more than 50 injuries including seven broken ribs and a fractured spine, and was finally found dead in his blood-spattered cot. His mother Tracey Connelly helped to disguise his injuries by smearing his face with chocolate.

She was later jailed over his death, along with her abusive lover Steven Barker and his brother Jason Owen.

The council’s then head of children’s services, Sharon Shoesmith, was later sacked and a serious case review said the 17-month-old’s death ‘could have been prevented’.

Peter Connelly – known as Baby P – was killed following months of abuse while he was on Haringey’s ‘at risk’ register.

The coroner said about Haringey’s treatment of Lily-Mai: ‘I have heard the evidence of several professionals who were charged with the care of Lily Mai, the doctors and nurses at Barnet Hospital, who were extremely concerned about her and that they did not believe it was safe for her to be discharged in the care of her parents.

‘There were other parents who were of the same view. And yet Haringey Children’s Services did facilitate that discharge and that is ultimately bewildering to me.

‘I will make a prevention of future deaths report to Haringey Council.

‘This is a very, very sad story and I’m afraid it is not the first time that a story has been told.’ 

Dr Cheentan Singh, from North Middlesex University Hospital, said the baby had been brought to the emergency department on January 31 2018.

In a statement read out in court, he said he told the parents that a head scan showed Lily-Mai had bleeding around the brain, to which her father Darren Hurrell responded by crying.

Dr Singh said the mother, Lauren Saint George, had a ‘brief smile on her face’, which he thought was an ‘abnormal reaction’ after he told her Lily-Mai was ‘so unwell she may die’.

The court heard Lily-Mai had extensive irreversible brain injury and multiple organ failure, and a post-mortem examination found bruises on her face and head that were not related to therapy.

Giving live evidence, pathologist Dr Nathaniel Cary said the baby had a haemorrhage in multiple compartments of her brain and spinal cord and damage caused by a lack of oxygen, which he said was a pattern explained by trauma.

Lily-Mai Saint George collapsed in her family home in Tottenham on January 31, 2018, and died of her injuries two days later at Great Ormond Street Hospital

He said the cause of death was a head injury caused by shaking and impact, and that the level of force was significantly greater than what would be termed as rough handling.

Dr Cary said fractures found on Lily-Mai’s right leg would have been caused two days before she died as a result of ‘forceful twisting and traction’, describing the level of force as ‘inappropriate and in excess of rough handling’.

He said there was a visible and notable change in Lily-Mai’s condition and that someone ‘would’ve known something was wrong’.

Dr Peter Ehrhardt, a retired paediatrician, said he agreed with Dr Cary’s evidence and told the inquest that he believed Lily-Mai’s injuries were due to her being assaulted.

Giving evidence by video link, Mr Hurrell said he told police that the CPR he had administered on his daughter may have caused the rib fractures but that he was not sure whether this was true.

He described himself as a ‘big lad and heavy-handed’, and said he does not know how Lily-Mai sustained the head injury.

When asked by coroner Mary Hassell whether he had done anything to cause Lily-Mai any injuries, he said: ‘No, I wouldn’t hurt my little girl.’

Mr Hurrell told the inquest that he had been arrested in April 2018 over the matter.

Senior Coroner Mary Hassell questioned why the anaemic and premature baby was discharged into the parents’ care during the inquest at St Pancras Coroner’s Court (pictured)

He said he told police he had grabbed Lily-Mai ‘tightly’ around her leg on one undated occasion to stop her falling off the bed while he was changing her.

Ms Hassell told Lily-Mai’s mother, who appeared at the hearing by video link, that she did not have to answer questions if she thought it would incriminate her.

Ms Saint George declined to answer questions and told the court she wanted to stick with what she had said in previous statements. 

Sithembile Dzingai, who worked at Barnet Hospital, told the inquest healthcare workers were worried when the parents would not visit for two or three days at a time when Lily-Mai was in hospital after her premature birth.

She said: ‘In my 12 years as a health visitor I’ve never had such feeling of anxiety about a case as I did about Lily-Mai being discharged in this way, because there were a number of concerns.’

Ms Dzingai said a referral to a social worker was made because she felt the baby was unsafe in her parents’ care. 

Pauline Naraine, a social worker from Haringey Council, read out minutes from the meeting regarding the well-being of Lily-Mai, that was carried out on January 31, 2018.

She said: ‘Ms Saint George has not engaged with Lily-Mai and she suffers from depression and was sectioned for a brief time. She has another child which resides with the father.

‘The parents have a tumultuous relationship with many verbal arguments. The hospital called security when Lauren started shouting. 

‘During a home visit, Darren changed the baby and then left her on the edge of the bed despite being told not to do this at hospital. 

‘There are concerns with [Darren] prioritising [Lauren’s] needs over the baby’s needs.’

She said if it had been raised with her urgently, then it is likely that emergency residential accommodation would have been found.

Ms Naraine added: ‘I think the level of support that was going in when the parents had gone home with Lily-Mai I suppose that support is not how it should have been.

‘I think that brings it back that the parents should have been in a residential in a supportive environment that would have safeguarded Lily.’

Theresa Ferguson, another social worker, visited the family a day before the tragic collapse.

She said: ‘I didn’t think there would be an immediate incident that would result in serious harm.

‘I was worried about them picking up on her health needs. I was worried about the baby falling off the bed while both of them were on their phones.

‘That’s why we were concerned about her going home because they might not be able to pick up on her needs or there might be an accident that we would perceive as careless.

‘I did think she would come to harm if she would remain in the care of her parents. I was really worried about her.’ 

Miss Saint George and Mr Hurrell were informed they were going to go into a residential unit to be observed on their parenting, but that night Lily-Mai was taken into hospital because of her injuries.

Ms Ferguson said: ‘Lauren got quite frustrated and angry. Her presentation was immature. Lauren just kept repeating I’m not going anywhere.

‘Lily was in Darren’s jacket, they were doing skin to skin contact, and she was sleeping on his chest. He responded that he would do anything he could do for his daughter.

‘Lauren became completely irate and went to the kitchen area. The door was shut so I couldn’t see her and remained in the room with Darren and Lily-Mai.

‘She wasn’t present for the conversation and Darren would repeat he would do anything he would need for her daughter. Lauren then left the property and Darren started talking how low Lauren could be.

‘I was worried about her temper, it seemed very immature, very angry and frustrated.’

The coroner asked Detective Sergeant Ian Valentine, of the Metropolitan Police, why no one had been prosecuted for Lily-Mai’s death.

He said: ‘After discussions with a senior homicide lawyer, and upon review, they have decided there is insufficient evidence to charge either or both parents at this time.

‘We have explored every possible avenue to bring this to criminal justice. The length of time shows how serious we have taken this case.

‘I take no pride that, as a homicide detective, that this case has not ended up court.’

In her determination, Senior Coroner Ms Hassell said: ‘I’ve heard evidence that Lily-Mai died as a consequence of a head injury that at the time of her death she suffered 19 rib fractures, that in addition to this she had an injury to her right leg, deep within the growing structure of the bone, and that she also had bleeding around both optic nerves typically associated with a head injury.

‘She suffered side to side compression not associated with fractures such as one might sustain from CPR.

‘The injury to her right leg was from forceful traction and twisting

‘This would have been inappropriate and greatly in excess of rough handling, so I heard.

‘The explanations of potential accidental mechanisms of injury from Lily-Mai’s parents were discounted by the forensic pathologist who examined Lily Mai after death as not consistent with her injuries.

‘When she suffered the head injury the effect would have been immediate and very noticeable.

‘In summary, she had a head injury, eye injury, spinal injury, rib fractures and many, many bruises not what you would expect in a newborn baby.

‘Taking into account the description from the forensic pathologist and that of the paediatrician that gave expert evidence this was a massive, massive injury I am entirely convinced that Lily Mai-died as a consequence of injuries that were non-accidental.

‘Given the force that I’ve heard that would have needed to be applied to suffer these injuries, I am entirely satisfied that Lily Mai was unlawfully killed.

She added: ‘I’m so sorry for the loss of this otherwise healthy baby girl.’

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