Mother accused of baby murders granted bail

A mother, who was jailed for killing her two children, has been granted bail by the Court of Appeal.

Donna Anthony, 31, was convicted of the murder of her two children, Jordan and Michael, in November 1998 at Bristol Crown Court. Eleven-month-old Jordan died in February 1996 and four-month-old Michael died in March 1997. Mrs Anthony was sentenced to life imprisonment – she always maintained that she had been wrongly convicted and that cot death was the cause of death of both children.

Mrs Anthony appealed against the convictions in June 2000, but the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. She then applied to the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) in September 2003, which considered a range of issues, including new expert medical evidence, and decided to refer Mrs Anthony's conviction to the Court of Appeal.

Mrs Anthony's case is one of 28 which will be reviewed, following the overturning of Angela Canning's murder conviction. Mrs Canning's conviction for killing two of her sons – seven-week-old Jason and eighteen-week-old Matthew – was overturned by the Court of Appeal in December 2003.

The case against Mrs Anthony had also relied on evidence from paediatrician Sir Roy Meadow, whose evidence has since been discredited in several other cases.

It is understood that the Crown Prosecution Service does not plan to oppose the appeal.

It has been reported that Mrs Anthony will be freed on bail within a few days. Her appeal is expected to be heard next month.

(KMcA/SP)