Acquitted at retrial 3 March 2007Science on trial
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BBC Radio 4 broadcast includes extracts from letters from Ian and Angela Gay |
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Top lawyer enlisted for salt pair's appeal 12 May 2005 |
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| ONE of Britain's most high profile lawyers will represent Ian and Angela Gay, who are appealing against convictions for killing their three-year-old foster son. Michael Mansfield QC, whose previous clients include Michael Barrymore and the Lawrence family in the Stephen Lawrence case, will represent the Bromsgrove couple who are both serving five years in prison after being convicted of the manslaughter of Christian Blewitt. Christian, who was from West Bromwich, died from salt poisoning in December 2002 and had also suffered a fatal head injury but the Gays claim they are the victims of a gross miscarriage of justice. During their trial at Worcester Crown Court, the couple denied causing Christian's death and maintained he died from natural causes. Speaking to The Standard this week, Mrs Gay's brother Carl Swain said his sister and Mr Gay felt justice would prevail when they were first charged and they would be found not guilty so they did not worry too much about who represented them. "Obviously things did not pan out how we had expected so now we are looking to get the best representation available to get them out of prison," he said. "When he heard about the appeal Michael Mansfield asked for the case himself so he must be confident that he can get the right result. "Having him on board is a major boost because he is such a high profile lawyer - we are all over the moon that he will be fighting our corner." Mrs Gay is currently in segregation for her own safety in Buckley Hall Prison, Rochdale, whereas Mr Gay has just been moved from Blakenhurst to the category C Usk Prison. The couple's appeal will be heard at the end of August at the High Court in London. |
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Pair deny killing child with salt, by Adam Aspinall |
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A West Midlands couple jailed for killing a three year-old boy they had planned to adopt yesterday insisted they were the victims of a "gross miscarriage of justice". Ian and Angela Gay were sentenced to five years' imprisonment after being convicted at Worcester Crown Court of the manslaughter of Christian Blewitt. It followed a trial in which it was claimed they had force-fed him salt. They have now written to the BBC from their cells, insisting they were innocent and claiming the force-feeding allegation was never put to them until their trial began. Christian and his two siblings were living on a trial placement with the Gays at the time of his death in 2002. The couple were planning to adopt all three. It was alleged the Gays force- fed Christian four spoonfuls of salt as a punishment for misbehaviour. In his letter to the BBC, Mr Gay wrote: "The prosecution never had any evidence that salt was ever given, other than what their expert witnesses guessed at." The couple were cleared of murder, but Mr Gay said he was numb when the jury returned a guilty verdict for manslaughter. "Our barristers had cautioned us to expect a verdict of manslaughter, as they knew that juries could behave in that way when the death of a young child is involved. Sometimes being innocent just isn't enough - the jury just want to blame somebody for what happened. "We now have to prove our innocence. We will not rest until we have done that, and nor will our family." Mrs Gay wrote: "For more than two years now, Ian and myself have been living a nightmare. All we ever wanted was a family of our own, yet we find ourselves in prison, the victims of a gross miscarriage of justice." She added: "I couldn't accept that anyone truly believed that Ian or myself were capable of harming our own little boy. "It was ludicrous that Ian or myself could be held responsible for Christian's death. For a brief time, he was our son - he called us mummy and daddy and we loved him." They have won the support of Dr Peter Acland, who carried out one of a number of post mortems on Christian. He said Christian died due to a high blood sodium level, but that this was "not necessarily" caused by the deliberate administration of salt. He told BBC Radio 4's Today show: "He could have obtained the salt accidentally or else there may have been some disease process which none of us could elicit. "As far as I am concerned, I have not heard evidence which convinces me that this child has been deliberately poisoned by the defendants." The Gays' legal team has been joined by John Batt, who represented Sally Clark, the mother cleared on appeal of murdering two of her children. Mr Batt told Today: "When substantially the only evidence was conflicting reports by well-qualified experts and there was no evidence of criminal activity, then these cases should not be brought." |
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23 March 2006
