Mother jailed for killing baby by burning her with a hairdryer

A mother who killed her baby daughter by burning her with a hairdryer has been jailed for six years.

Courtney Gartshore, 28, used the appliance to subject three-month-old Dahlia-Rose to "significant and sustained heat" on her head and body.

Emergency services were called to the scene at a property in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, in September 2023, but the child had died.

Gartshore was convicted of culpable homicide following a trial at the High Court in Aberdeen in July.

Sentencing Gartshore at the High Court in Edinburgh, judge Simon Collins KC described the case "uniquely disturbing and distressing".

He said it was "tragic as well as terrible".

Gartshore appeared via videolink at the 25-minute hearing, during which she sobbed and wiped away tears.

The judge said Gartshore would have to live for the rest of her life knowing she was responsible for her daughter's death.

Defence counsel Murray Macara KC told the court that Gartshore had no recollection of using the hairdryer.

He said he could not provide "any reasonable or compelling reason" for its use and could only speculate that the baby had been cold and it was used to provide a sense of heat.

During her trial Gartshore's defence argued the baby may have already been dead before the burn injuries, but a jury took just over an hour to return the guilty verdict.

It heard that Dahlia-Rose suffered severe burns to 18% of the surface area of her body, including her head.

The jury was spared having to see photos of the injuries.

They were also told that Gartshore had consumed alcohol before the incident.

Gartshore was unanimously found guilty of culpably and recklessly causing Dahlia-Rose to be subjected to heat from the appliance while the child was in her sole care.

The charge stated that Dahlia-Rose's injuries were so severe that she died as a result.

Speaking after the conviction, Det Insp James Callander said: "Children are defenceless and should be protected.

"The death of any child is particularly harrowing, but a child's death at the hands of a parent is incredibly disturbing.

"Everyone involved in this investigation was deeply affected by the circumstances of Dahlia-Rose's death, but our job is to uncover the truth and ensure that the person responsible is brought to justice."