A mother who killed her three-month-old daughter with heat from a hairdryer plans to appeal against her conviction and sentence.
Courtney Gartshore, 28, used the appliance to subject Dahlia-Rose Gartshore to “significant and sustained heat” on the head and body, fatally injuring her. She was convicted of the culpable homicide of her daughter following a trial at the High Court in Aberdeen in July.
Six-year sentence
Gartshore was jailed for six years when she was sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on August 14. Court officials confirmed on Monday that an intimation to appeal against conviction and sentence has been lodged on behalf of Gartshore, starting the appeal process.
Emergency services were called to King Street in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, on September 30 2023, where Dahlia-Rose was pronounced dead at the scene. Gartshore had earlier been drinking while in sole charge of the infant.
Investigation and arrest
An investigation into the child’s death was launched and Gartshore, from Aberdeen, was arrested and charged in November 2023.
Sentencing Gartshore earlier this month, Judge Simon Collins KC called it a “uniquely disturbing” case. He said: “It is tragic as well as terrible. You will have to live the rest of your life with the knowledge that you were responsible for her death. This was a gross breach of the most basic duty as a parent.”
Judge’s remarks
Although Judge Collins acknowledged that Gartshore had not intended to harm or kill her baby, he said she was culpable in the “highest degree” of carelessness. He added that it “should have been obvious” that Dahlia Rose was in “severe distress and pain”. Judge Collins said her likely cause of death was hyperthermia and heat stroke.
Defence lawyer Murray Macara, representing Gartshore, told the court he could not provide a reasonable or compelling explanation for why she used the hairdryer but speculated that the baby was cold and that she may have attempted to “recklessly” use it as a source of heat. He called it a “truly tragic and distressing case”.
