Mum who murdered 19-day-old daughter jailed for at least 19 years

A mother who murdered her baby daughter has been jailed for a minimum of 19 years after being given a life sentence.

Nicole Blain was found guilty last month of killing her 19-day-old child Thea Wilson, after she died from injuries that suggested blunt force trauma or being shaken.

Blain, 30, said she found her daughter lying on the floor of her Greenock flat on 14 July 2023, and claimed the newborn had been dropped by another child.

At the High Court in Glasgow, Judge Lord Scott dismissed that as a "patently absurd" version of events, and said Blain had carried out "catastrophic deadly violence" on Thea.

The judge added that Blain's claims were "a feeble attempt to evade responsibility" from her crimes.

Dozens of members of the public gathered in court, and cries of "monster" rang out in the public gallery as Blain was led away to begin her sentence.

Her lawyer Thomas Ross said an appeal against the conviction and sentence had already been lodged.

Earlier this year a trial heard how Thea had suffered injuries including three skull fractures, brain damage and bleeding behind the eyes.

A pathologist said these were consistent with the baby being violently shaken and repeatedly hit off a hard floor, wall or furniture.

Blain insisted she woke up from a nap to find her daughter injured on the floor and that another child also in the flat had caused whatever happened to Thea.

However she was found guilty by a jury in April.

Lord Scott told her: "Despite what you have continued to say, what happened was no accident.

"It could not have been caused by a fall or being dropped. Despite persistent attempts to suggest it, what was done was not by another child, but by you, the main person responsible for the care of baby Thea.

"Rather than love, protect and nurture her, what Thea received from you was catastrophic deadly violence. What the jury decided beyond reasonable doubt was that, in an act that was intentional or wickedly reckless, you murdered a tiny defenceless baby."

In a statement read in court, Thea's father Ross Wilson said losing Thea had broken his heart and shattered his life.

He said: "The emptiness I felt walking away from her… since that moment I cannot sleep, eat or take part in any form of physical exercise.

"The pain is constant - it does not ease, it does not fade."

Lord Scott told the court the impact statement by Thea's father also said he suffered feelings of guilt wondering if he could have done more to prevent the death, and that he only had 45 minutes with Thea in hospital before she died.

The trial heard in April that Blain had struggled with post-natal depression after Thea's birth.

On the day of Thea's death, she was visited in the morning by a social worker who said the baby was in her crib, and that the mother had complained of feeling tired.

Blain was due to take her daughter to visit her paternal grandmother Laura Wilson in Ayrshire later that day.

Early in the afternoon, Blain called Wilson's mobile phone. The call was answered by her husband Alan, who told the court he had heard a child screaming in the background.

He told the court: "I had never heard anything like it. It was piercing and extremely loud.

"I thought it was an older child doing it, but then I realised it was the baby who was screaming."

Alan Wilson said Blain told him that she did not know what to do, and "did not sound right". He suggested she call an ambulance.

When Blain met Laura Wilson at the hospital later, Blain told her another child who was in the flat "had done it".

Blain had also spoken on the phone earlier to a support worker, telling her that another child had taken Thea out of the cot and dropped her.

When the support worker arrived at the flat she dialled 999 after seeing Thea was cold, not making any sounds and looked an "awful colour".

The baby died later that day in hospital.

Pathologist Leighanne Deboys told the jury a combination of Thea being shaken and impact with a hard surface would account for her injuries, described by another medic as similar to those suffered by a car crash victim.

Prosecutor Alan Cameron KC said any suggestion another child could have caused the injuries was "just nonsense".

Blain's lawyer Thomas Ross told the court she has effectively been in solitary confinement for most of her time in HMP Stirling after being remanded.

The KC added: "Since 18 May, she has been allowed to leave for meals for 10 minutes and also for a short period of exercise.

"Whatever the sentence, the experience of prison will be extremely difficult for her."

After the hearing, the women in court held a balloon release in tribute to the baby while crying out "Justice for Thea".