Teenage mother is jailed for life for murdering her newborn son by stuffing cotton wool in his mouth

A teenage girl who murdered her newborn son by fracturing his skull and putting cotton wool in his mouth when she was just 15 has been sentenced to life with a minimum of 12 years in Worcester Crown Court today.

Last week, Paris Mayo, now 19, was convicted of the gruesome murder of baby Stanley by inflicting complex skull fractures on him after giving birth in the living room of her parents’ home alone in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, in March 2019.

After the bone was broken, presumably caused by her foot on his head, she put five pieces of cotton wool in his mouth – two of which were lodged deep in the throat.

Mayo then stuffed Stanley’s lifeless body into a garbage bag and left it outside the door of their house before going upstairs to bed.

Horribly, the killer had texted her older brother George Mayo saying, “When you go out, can you put the black bag in the bin, it’s just full of last night’s sick, please.”

His remains were discovered the next morning by Mayo’s mother who called the police.

Her lawyer, Bernard Richmond KC, said Mayo was a “pathetic and vulnerable individual” who was “immature” and not supported by those around her.

Before the judge delivered his verdict, Mr. Richmond said: ‘When she was faced with a decision to make, she did not face it. By the time she had to, the decision she made was woefully, woefully wrong.

“This was a 15-year-old girl who was vulnerable and used by those around her and not supported.”

He added that Mayo’s mother couldn’t handle seeing her daughter in the dock, explaining that when he was alive, her father Patrick could be “emotionally cruel.”

Mr Mayo, who had a number of health problems and was undergoing home dialysis upstairs when his daughter gave birth, died 10 days after Stanley was born.

Mr Richmond added: ‘Paris’ father died the day before her first interview. It has been said that she killed him too, adding to the burden on her. “This is, in every sense of the word, a life sentence. It will be a lonely, isolating and frightening time for her.”

Before the prosecution, Jonas Hankin KC argued that the killing of baby Stanley was premeditated. He said: ‘Paris Mayo clearly intended to prevent the discovery of the pregnancy or the existence of the baby.

“It was decided to avoid the help of her mother, father or the emergency services and kill her baby.” Mr Justice Garnham said it was a ‘sad and appalling’ thing to imprison her for a minimum of 12 years.

He said, “You haven’t done anything to prepare for the birth. You were scared and traumatized by this event. “I have no doubt it was painful and overwhelming for you. It seems you didn’t yell, you were so afraid not to disturb your parents upstairs.

“As soon as Stanley was born, you decided he couldn’t live anymore and you attacked him on the head. ‘How you did this is not clear, but I suspect you crushed his head, probably under your foot. It sure did some serious damage to him, but that attack didn’t kill Stanley.

‘He survived. You decided you had to finish off Stanley by stuffing cotton balls down his throat.

“As difficult as your circumstances may have been, killing your son was a truly awful thing to do.”

Mayo, who cried as she was led back to jail, will serve at least 12 years before being eligible for parole.

During her trial, Mayo had told the court she was unaware she was pregnant.

Previously, the Worcester Crown Court heard that Stanley was conceived in the summer of 2018 and by the autumn Mayo was suffering from illness and back and stomach pains.

Bernard Richmond KC, defending, asked if she knew she was pregnant at any point before Stanley was born.

“No, I was always afraid of the thought that I might be. I had never done a test before,” Mayo told the jury.

“I was more suspicious than I could have been, instead of knowing if it was me or not.

“I would just try to make excuses for myself for what I thought was wrong. I was worried that maybe I would be because I was gaining weight, but I tried to put it down to other things.

“I ate larger portions of food and ate throughout the day.”

Mr. Richmond asked, “Was there a stage before birth when you said to yourself, ‘I’m pregnant’?” to which Mrs. Mayo replied, “No.”

Describing her intermittent illness in late 2018, Mayo told the court, “I think there were times when I was sick, but it would come back and go away — it was erratic.

“I thought it was a stomach bug that went away, or I ate something that didn’t suit me.”

When Mr. Richmond asked, “Have you ever equated that with being pregnant?” Mayo replied, “No.”

Jurors were told that the suspect was taken to her GP by her mother in October 2018 and was asked during the investigation if she had sex.

Ms Mayo told the court: “She asked me at that point if I was having sex and then I said no because at the time I wasn’t,” she said.

“I think I misunderstood how she asked. I felt like I could have told her if I felt comfortable enough, but I didn’t know how to go about it.’

Mr. Richmond asked if her mother knew she had sex and she replied, ‘I think she knew I had sex, but she thought I had stopped having sex with people.

“I think she knew before that I’d lost my virginity, but thought I wasn’t having sex with people anymore.”

The jurors were told that Stanley was conceived when Mayo was 14 and that the teen lost her virginity at age 13.

Explaining why she started having sex so young, she said, “I just thought it was a way to get people to like me because I was kind of insecure about how I looked and how I felt about myself at home.” thinking because my family situation was very bad.

“I was always patronized and belittled and told I was worthless. I just wanted to feel a little bit more validated and the way I felt about getting that was by having sex with people.”

Mayo told the jury she didn’t admit she was pregnant until just before she gave birth.

“He wasn’t crying or making a sound and his eyes weren’t open,” she said.

“I started to freak out because he wasn’t crying or making a sound and I got really scared. It all happened so fast that I don’t really remember much about it.

“I just remember he hit his head and that was really it. The umbilical cord was wrapped around his throat when I untied it and then it broke.”

Mr. Richmond asked, “Stanley had skull fractures. Did you put them on him on purpose?’

Mrs. Mayo replied, “No.”

When asked about putting cotton balls in Stanley’s mouth, she replied, “To me it looked like stuff was coming out of his mouth.” When I was questioned I said two because that’s all I remember.’

When asked how she felt about it, Ms. Mayo said, “I feel really awful because I knew I didn’t want to hurt him.

“I feel really stupid for not going to tell anyone and get help. I loved him. I always think of what he would be and what he would have been like.’

But after being cross-examined for weeks, Mayo’s claims turned out to be false and she was proven to have deliberately concealed her pregnancy.

The prosecution said Stanley’s “short life was filled with pain and suffering when he should have been cherished and loved.”

In a statement, a spokesperson added: “The prosecution built a case based on medical evidence proving that Paris Mayo’s actions were intentional. had a family that would have supported her.

“I want to thank the jury for their careful consideration of this difficult case.”

Detective Inspector Julie Taylor said outside Worcester Crown Court last week: ‘Paris Mayo, who was 15 years old at the time, claimed that Stanley was born cold, made no sound whatsoever and hit his head on the ground when he was born.

“She didn’t tell anyone about Stanley’s birth or his death. She claimed she was unaware she was pregnant at the time.

“Today, after a six-week trial at Worcester Crown Court, a jury has determined that Mayo was indeed responsible for his death; and tried to hide her pregnancy from those who could and would have supported her.

“The death of a newborn baby is heartbreaking, especially when the person responsible is the baby’s own mother.

“This was a devastating case for the investigative team and I would like to thank those involved for their outstanding efforts to ensure that justice is served today.”