Teenager accused of illegally abortion tells jury she was ‘scared’

A six-months pregnant teenager accused of illegally aborting her baby has told the court she was ‘scared’ when the child was born stillborn.  

The court heard that Sophie Harvey, then 19, was upset, confused and distressed when she gave birth. 

Once Harvey realised the child was not moving she wrapped the infant’s body in a towel and placed it in a bin at her Gloucestershire home. 

Harvey is on trial at Gloucester Crown Court alongside her partner, 25-year-old Elliot Benham, accused of taking a drug they purchased to end her pregnancy.    

Giving evidence, Harvey, now 25, said she went into labour on the afternoon of September 9 2018 when her family were at a dance competition.

She told the jury: ‘I had some pain in my stomach. I was sat on the toilet and there was blood. I think Elliot was in my bedroom.

‘I was scared. I believe I was having a miscarriage.’

Asked why she thought that, Harvey replied: ‘I am not sure … because there was a lot of blood.’

Tom Godfrey, representing Harvey, asked her: ‘What did you see?’

The defendant took a long pause and several deep breaths and was unable to answer.

Mr Godfrey asked: ‘You told the police that there was a baby. Is that what you saw?’

‘Yes,’ she replied.

Harvey said there was no movement from the baby, it was not making any noise and it was blue in colour.

‘How were you feeling at this point,’ Mr Godfrey asked.

‘I was in shock,’ Harvey said.

Mr Godfrey then asked: ‘What did you decide to do, Sophie?’ 

Harvey replied: ‘After I put it in the towel, I put it in the bin. I believed it was OK to do so.’

Asked how she felt at this point, Harvey said: ‘A mixture of things. I was upset, confused. Just distressed.’

The court heard that  After a positive pregnancy test, she made an appointment to see her GP on August 13 who then referred her to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) for a termination.  

During that consultation on August 30 Harvey learned she was beyond the 24-week gestation period and told the court she later decided to keep the baby.

She said: ‘I was shocked. I just wanted what I thought was going to happen, so it was a surprise. I thought the abortion would go ahead.’

Prosecutors allege that after that appointment, the defendants ordered a kit of five pills to end the pregnancy.

When police searched Harvey’s home, they found the packet with the first pill allegedly missing, which they say she had taken.

The court heard Harvey had used her phone to carry out internet searches on several dates from September 3 to 6 about purchasing abortion pills, which were paid for on September 7.

Benham, who is still with Harvey, collected the package from the Royal Mail sorting office on September 22.

Harvey said she had removed the first pill from the blister pack because she was considering taking it in case part of the birthing process had remained inside her.

Mr Godfrey asked: ‘Did you take that pill, Sophie?’

‘No,’ she replied.

‘I put it in the bin. I put the packet in my drawer.’

Under cross-examination, Harvey said she had decided to keep the baby after being told she could not have a legal abortion.

Anna Vigars KC, prosecuting, asked why searches about abortions had been carried out on Benham’s iPad on September 17 if she had already lost the baby.

Mrs Vigers asked: ‘Why did you pay for the abortion pills?’

She replied: ‘I don’t know. I was stupid and we shouldn’t have done it.’

Mrs Vigars asked: ‘There was only one reason you sent off for those pills and that was to end the pregnancy?’

She replied: ‘I don’t know. Just so that I had another option.’

Mrs Vigars asked: ‘The option was an illegal abortion, wasn’t it?’

She replied: ‘I don’t know.’

The barrister suggested the baby was actually born on September 23.

Mrs Vigars said: ‘You knew taking the pill would be illegal if what you intended to do was abort the pregnancy.

‘You didn’t really think that it was all right to throw your baby in the bin?’

‘I don’t know,’ Harvey replied.

Harvey, of St Mary’s Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire denies charges of procuring a poison, procuring own miscarriage by poison and attempting to pervert the course of public justice.

Benham, of Wingfield, Swindon, Wiltshire denies a single charge of attempting to pervert the course of public justice and has ‘acknowledged’ his part in procuring the tablets.

Both defendants have pleaded guilty to concealing the birth of a child.

The trial continues.