Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Baby born on day mum died to have life support stopped
A12-DAY-OLD baby whose teenage mother died on the day he was born has irreversible brain damage and should be allowed to die, a judge has ruled.
Danielle Jones, 18, died after collapsing at her parents’ home in Bristol on January 17, Mr Justice Hayden heard.
Her son, Danny, was delivered by Caesarean section and treated in an intensive care unit.
Mr Justice Hayden heard that Miss Jones had not told anyone that she was pregnant.
He was told that Miss Jones had been 36 weeks pregnant – two weeks short of full term and that she had collapsed for no apparent reason and was declared dead on arrival at hospital.
A specialist told the judge that Danny’s brain had been denied oxygen during birth. He said Danny had been in an intensive care unit since shortly after birth and was being given “mechanical ventilation”.
The judge was told that Danny could not be treated, would not recover and would never have any “meaningful interaction” with the outside world.
The specialist added that Danny had suffered irreversible brain damage during birth and should be allowed to die.
The judge saw Danny, with relatives, in hospital via a computer link during a break in the hearing and said he was “suffused” with the love of “both sides” of his family.
“He is surrounded by toys,” said Mr Justice Hayden.
“There’s a Winnie-the-Pooh, a monkey and a small traditional
teddy bear with a big bow.”
The judge added: “There’s also a white fluffy toy that belonged to Danny’s mother.
“It looked almost new and it brought home to me, with powerful force, how very young his mum was.”
Mr Justice Hayden ruled yesterday that doctors could lawfully disconnect Danny from a ventilator and stop providing life-support treatment.
The judge heard that Ms Jones’s boyfriend, Ozzy Godfrey, also 18, was thought to be Danny’s father.
He said relatives agreed that Danny should be allowed to die.
Mr Justice Hayden, who is based in London, considered the case at a virtual public hearing in the Family Division of the High Court.
He said Danny and his parents could be named in media reports.
But the judge said the hospital where Danny was being cared for could not be named, and medics treating him could not be identified.
He also said no photographs of Danny could be published.
Bosses at the University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust had asked Mr Justice Hayden to decide what moves were in Danny’s best interests.