A grieving mother who was thrown in a cell after she was wrongly arrested on suspicion of murdering her young son has won a claim for damages.
Abby Podmore received an undisclosed payout from police after 15 officers arrived at her home in two riot vans to take her away shortly after the death of three-year-old Alfie.
Ms Podmore said she was relieved her two-year legal battle had finally come to a end.
Last year the 22-year-old won a five-figure sum from Birmingham Children’s Hospital where her boy’s fatal chest infection went undiagnosed in February 2011.
‘Alfie was my whole world. I loved him so much and did the very best I could for him. I knew in my heart that I couldn’t have done any more for my little boy. I put my trust in the hospital and believed the doctors and nurses when they told me he would be okay and to take him home.’
An inquest heard antibiotics may have saved Alfie but instead he was prescribed antacids and sent home.
The dental nurse, from Quinton, was held by police for 24 hours and was not allowed to see her little boy’s body until ten days after his death.
She said she was disgusted by her treatment at the hands of ‘heavy-handed’ officers who put up a crime scene tent in her garden less than an hour after Alfie’s death. ‘They tagged me a murderer and I was not,’ she added.
John Cooper QC who has defended a number of women accused of killing their children, said he was perplexed by the behaviour of the police. ‘The police should always be aware from past examples that, in many instances, the parents are completely and utterly blameless.’
West Midlands Police have not admitted any wrongdoing.
Source: http://metro.co.uk/2013/06/06/mother-branded-a-child-killer-wins-police-payout-3831927/
Guests: 466
Hidden: 0
Users: 0