Nursery nurse who killed baby by strapping her to bean bag jailed for 14 years

A nursery nurse convicted of killing a nine-month-old baby she strapped face-down to a bean bag for more than an hour has been jailed for 14 years.

Kate Roughley, 37, ‘punished’ Genevieve Meehan, known to her family as Gigi, for ‘not sleeping long enough’ at the Tiny Toes nursery in Cheadle Hulme, Stockport, on May 9, 2022.

Jurors at Manchester Crown Court sobbed as they watched harrowing CCTV footage of Genevieve ‘desperately thrashing in order to survive’ while being ‘ignored’ by Roughley until it was too late.

Speaking after Roughley was found guilty of manslaughter, Genevieve’s parents said they would never forgive her ‘callousness’, adding: ‘She treated our daughter with cruelty and contempt.’

Referring to the video in her sentencing remarks, judge Mrs Justice Ellenbogen told Roughley: ‘As the harrowing CCTV audio and video footage showed, that day you left Genevieve in that position only carrying the most cursory and infrequent of checks.

‘I am certain that every person in this courtroom who watched that footage was willing you to pick her up and remove her from the danger you had placed her, knowing of course that you didn’t.’

Genevieve’s death from asphyxiation brought on by a combination of pathophysiological stresses was a direct result of Roughley’s actions in creating a ‘very unsafe sleeping environment’, jurors heard.

Peter Wright KC said she placed the infant in ‘mortal danger’ with the sleeping arrangements, also inappropriately covering her with a blanket, and then deliberately did nothing about it.

In his closing speech to the jurors, Mr Wright said: ‘She considered Genevieve was occupying too much of her time and was too vocal, too demanding, so she was going to do something about it.

‘Genevieve was being punished for her earlier perceived misdemeanours, for not sleeping long enough for her liking. She was being banished to the bean bag and restrained.

‘It was a recipe for disaster, and disaster there followed.’

In deeply moving statements, Genevieve’s parents, John Meehan and Katie Wheeler, described feeling ‘dead inside’ and robbed of the moments with their daughter ‘that make life so wonderful’.

Ms Wheeler said: ‘Sitting in this Court over the last five weeks has been harrowing. We have heard and seen things that no parent should ever have to witness.

‘Prior to the trial I had hoped that Genevieve had been unaware of what was happening to her during those hours on 9 May. However, I now know that Genevieve suffered.

‘She was frightened, she fought for her life and would have been desperate for us to save her. How is one to process the knowledge that your child suffered so horrifically before they died?’

In another statement, she said: ‘Gi was at such a wonderful age when she died. She was so interactive with her sister and she smiled and laughed all of the time.

‘We had booked our first family holiday for July and some of the girls’ holiday clothes had arrived the day before Gigi died.

‘She tried on her sunglasses and her swimming costume that Sunday afternoon. My heart aches when I look at her things and think of all the love, opportunities and life she will never experience.

‘As Genevieve’s mother I feel that I should have known she was going to die. I despise myself for not holding on to her and refusing to let her go on that morning of May 9.

‘We had all had such a wonderful weekend and I had no idea that I wouldn’t see my little girl alive again after I dropped her off at that place that day.

‘I lived that day in complete ignorance of what was happening to Gi and I cannot forgive myself.’

Ms Wheeler, a solicitor, went on: ‘I used to be ambitious and spent years working towards my career but all of that has gone because nothing seems to matter anymore.

‘I want to scream at the world every day about how angry I feel. There will be no forgiveness and this hatred I feel will never leave me. The only emotion that counters this is my love for Gigi.

‘I want the world to know how loved Gigi is and how desperate I am to have her, hold her, hear her breath in my ear and for her to have her cheek next to mine.

‘My little Gigi was and is a beautiful soul, the image of her daddy and the light of our lives.’

Mr Meehan said in his statement: ‘I have a beautiful daughter and her name is Genevieve.

‘I could not have known that, by leaving her with you, someone paid and entrusted to provide her with care, I was leaving her with someone that simply had no care for those she was paid to protect.

‘I will never forgive myself for leaving her with you and that I was not there in her last moments to hold her hand and save her.’

Addressing Roughley, he went on: ‘For you, I have no forgiveness or understanding. In any event, that forgiveness is not mine to give as it was my beautiful daughter’s life that you destroyed.

‘She was fun, passionate, mischievous, independent, and full of life. This is who you destroyed. For you there will be no redemption and no legacy.

‘You will never be anything other than a child killer. However, my daughter will have a legacy. Her name will live on. Through us, her kindness and passion will help others.

‘I am so proud of her and that is why, for as long as I am living, I will never stop saying, I have a beautiful daughter and her name is Genevieve.’

Mr Wright told jurors Genevieve was left virtually immobilised and face down from 1.35pm to 3.12pm.

Roughley’s actions were said to be fuelled by an ‘illogical and disturbing hostility’ towards the youngster which was revealed on further CCTV footage from May 5 and 6.

She was subjected to ‘rough handling’ by Roughley, who called her ‘stress head’ and on one occasion told her: ‘Genevieve go home. Do you have to be so loud and constant? Change the record.’

Roughley sang to her ‘stop whingeing’ and ‘Genevieve go home. Please, I’m even asking nicely. You are driving me bananas and I’m not wearing pyjamas’.

The nursery worker’s case was that Genevieve’s death was a ‘terrible and unavoidable accident’.

Roughley joined Tiny Toes straight from college at the age of 18 and said she gained most of her knowledge of working with babies and young children from her colleagues.

Giving evidence, she said she was ‘devastated’ by the tragedy and felt responsible as the child was in her care but did not feel her actions were the cause of her death.

Roughley said she treated Genevieve no differently from any other child as she told the jury she placed the youngster on her side and that she remained in that position, with her face visible throughout, until she made the grim discovery.

She said she made suitable and appropriate checks on Genevieve and denied the prosecution’s claim that she ‘persecuted’ the youngster.

The defendant told the court that the ratio of the numbers of staff to children at the nursery ‘gradually worsened’ during her time at Tiny Toes as the ‘number of children went up and the number of staff went down’.

The court heard in April and May 2022 the staff to children ratios were at various times one to nine, two to 11, two to 13 and one to 16.

It is understood a separate health and safety investigation into the now closed Tiny Toes is ongoing.

Greater Manchester Police revealed this week another Tiny Toes worker has been charged with four counts of child neglect, though not in relation to Genevieve.

Rebecca Gregory, 25, of Stockport, will appear at the town’s magistrates’ court on August 5.

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