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Ellis Donnelly

Age: 0

Sex: female

Date: 1 Oct 2019

Place: Teesside

Ellis Donnelly died shortly after she was born. She was later taken to hospital dead, and in a very cold condition.

Her 26-year-old mother was tried for her murder but no evidence was offered and the case was dropped.

An inquest held in December 2022 concluded that Ellis Donnelly had been killed unlawfully.

It was said that Ellis Donnelly had struggled to survive for two hours after he was born and that he had then been stored in a very cold place. Two days after his death his mother took his body to the hospital in a carrier bag and said that he had been still born. However, it was noted that his umbilical cord had been cleanly cut and that his pink colour showed that he had breathed freely.

At her trial the prosecution said that Ellis Donnelly’s mother had not wanted Ellis Donnelly to survive. It was heard that Ellis Donnelly’s mother had searched the internet for terms such as ‘how to kill a baby naturally’, ‘how to kill a foetus’, ‘36 weeks pregnant and want nothing to do with the baby’ and ‘can you revive a baby that has been dead for two days?’. However, Ellis Donnelly’s mother said that a friends children had made the searches.

Ellis Donnelly’s mother had said that when Ellis Donnelly was born that it was obvious that she was not breathing and that she didn’t think to call for an ambulance.

However, following her claims, the Coroner said, ‘It is clear to me that Ellis Donnelly’s mother made deliberate decisions not to care for her unborn and later born baby. She did not want a baby and did not want him to survive’, noting that Ellis Donnelly could have lived for up to two hours.

Doctors from James Cook Hospital said that when Ellis Donnelly was brought to them that she and the dressing gown that she had been wrapped in were freezing cold, indicating that she had been stored in a very cold place. Further, when the police went to her home, a police dog trained to find bodies gave a strong indication around an orange bucket in an outhouse at her home as the place she had been kept.

Following the verdict at the inquest the Coroner said that she would direct police to designate Ellis Donnelly’s mother as a dangerous person, noting that on the balance of probability she had not wanted the baby and that she had lied to medical professionals, the police and while giving evidence during the inquest.

The Coroner said, ‘She proffers conspiracy theories instead of factual reality, she lacks credibility and is an unreliable witness. Through omission, action and intention I am satisfied that Ellis was unlawfully killed’.


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