Ellie-May Minshull Coyle: Toddler dies after being tied up and forced to sleep face down inside cage by mother and stepfather
A trial at the Liverpool Crown Court heard some of the horrifying details in the death of 19-month-old infant Ellie-May Minshull Coyle, including how the toddler was forced to sleep face down in a 'monstrous cage' bed. The culprits, 19-year-old Lauren Coyle (Ellie's mother), 20-year-old stepfather Reece Hitchcott, and their 20-year-old lodger Connor Kirby, have all pled not guilty to their manslaughter charge.
According to the Daily Mail, Ellie-May passed away on March 23 last year just a day after the mother had taken her out to a local job center where she looked 'mischievous and full of life.' Around 7:30 p.m. the previous night, Hitchcott and Kirby, put the child to bed. However, this was not a run-of-the-mill bed; it had been specially modified to ensure the toddler was exposed to as little as possible to 'help her settle into a sleep routine.'