A day care provider in the United Kingdom is on trial, accused of mistreating an infant in her care, ultimately leading to the child's death. When the tragedy occurred in May 2022, Kate Roughley, 37, was working in the infant room at Tiny Toes Nursery in Cheadle Hulme, Stockport. Roughley reportedly swaddled Katie Wheeler and John Meehan's 9-month-old daughter, Genevieve, known as Gigi, and placed her face down on a bean bag, where she died from asphyxiation.
According to the BBC, Roughley's attorney claimed she had worked at the facility since the age of 18 and up until Gigi's death had no complaints about her work. Prosecutors argue the nursery lead was hostile toward the infant in the days leading up to her death and it may not have been an accident.
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Roughley was allegedly in charge of putting the babies down for naps.
The BBC reported that Roughley was the lead in the baby room on May 9, 2022, and was responsible for getting the babies ready to sleep. Prosecutors allege Roughley swaddled Gigi extremely tightly the day she died and placed her face down on a beanbag to take a nap. Prosecutor Peter Wright KC told Manchester Crown Court this was an "obvious recipe for disaster."
After putting Gigi down, Roughley allegedly took a break.
Wright told the jury Roughley swaddled Gigi "so tightly that the child was effectively unable to move," per the BBC. He added that the baby was allegedly strapped onto the beanbag face down and covered with a blanket. The child reportedly fussed, but Wright alleged her "cries were ignored, and she was left tightly swaddled, restrained, and covered in this position."
The baby was reportedly left in the bean bag for an extended period.
Wright claimed Roughley left the room and Gigi was in the face-down position for more than 90 minutes.
"Any level of interest in her well-being was during this period, we say, sporadic and, at best, fleeting," he said. He added Roughley allegedly had a blatant disregard for Gigi saying, "all sober and reasonable people would recognize was both dangerous and would unless averted, subject Genevieve to the risk of some harm."
Roughley allegedly mistreated Gigi in the days leading up to her death.
According to Wright, surveillance video captured Roughley telling her coworkers to ignore any babies if they start to cry. When it came to Gigi, she allegedly called her a "stress head" and told her to stop whining and "go home," Wright said, per the BBC.
"Her hostility to Genevieve was, we say, as illogical as it was disturbing," he added.
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Roughley's attorney argued Gigi's death was an accident.
"Genevieve's death was a terrible and unavoidable accident and not caused by any acts of Kate Roughley that were unlawful," Sarah Elliott KC, Roughley's attorney, told the jury, the BBC reported.
According to her attorney, Roughley was beloved by parents and children, and Gigi's death was a tragedy. "In those 17 years, Kate Roughley had never been in trouble. There were no complaints about her work, in fact quite the opposite," Elliott said.
