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| Liverpool mum admits killing baby found in Warrington woodland | Liverpool mum admits killing baby found in Warrington woodland |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Joanne Sharkey is due to be sentenced on 21 March | Joanne Sharkey is due to be sentenced on 21 March |
| A mum has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of her child, who was found in a woodland close to a theme park more than a quarter of a century ago. | A mum has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of her child, who was found in a woodland close to a theme park more than a quarter of a century ago. |
| Joanne Sharkey, 55, of Liverpool, denied murdering her baby boy, whose remains were discovered close to the Gulliver's World theme park in Warrington, Cheshire, on 14 March 1998. | Joanne Sharkey, 55, of Liverpool, denied murdering her baby boy, whose remains were discovered close to the Gulliver's World theme park in Warrington, Cheshire, on 14 March 1998. |
| As well as pleading guilty to manslaughter through diminished responsibility at Liverpool Crown Court, she also entered a guilty plea to endeavouring to conceal the birth of a child. | As well as pleading guilty to manslaughter through diminished responsibility at Liverpool Crown Court, she also entered a guilty plea to endeavouring to conceal the birth of a child. |
| Sharkey is due to be sentenced on 21 March. | Sharkey is due to be sentenced on 21 March. |
| Joanne Sharkey was due to face trial accused of murdering her baby | |
| The infant who was believed to be born at full term was found discarded in two black bin bags by a local dog walker, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said. | |
| At the time, the identity of the boy's parents was not known but they were identified after an investigation by the police that spanned over two decades. | At the time, the identity of the boy's parents was not known but they were identified after an investigation by the police that spanned over two decades. |
| Both the mother and father of the baby were arrested on 28 July 2023 on suspicion of murder, the CPS said. | Both the mother and father of the baby were arrested on 28 July 2023 on suspicion of murder, the CPS said. |
| After a thorough investigation by Cheshire Police, the father was released without facing any charges. | |
| The force said he was unaware of the pregnancy, the birth, or his subsequent death. | |
| Sharkey was charged on 15 April 2024 with murder and endeavouring to conceal the birth of a child. | |
| Police said it was determined she had concealed her pregnancy, given birth at her home and caused the death of the baby in the following hours. The baby was found to have wads of tissue in his mouth and throat, the force added. | |
| Local people arranged a burial and funeral service for the infant | |
| Sharkey, of Denham Close in West Derby, was due to face trial accused of murdering her baby between 8 and 12 March 1998, but her guilty plea to manslaughter by diminished responsibility was accepted by the prosecution. | |
| Prosecution barrister Jonas Hankin KC said all the elements of a diminished responsibility plea were supported by psychiatrists, the police, the CPS and counsel on both sides. | |
| Judge Mrs Justice Eady said: "I have read and reviewed the medical evidence in light of the test required for a defence of diminished responsibility and what is clear is that, given the unequivocal acceptance of the medical evidence, there could be no identifiable reason for a jury to reject that evidence so I approve the course you have outlined." | |
| Detectives named the infant Callum after the Callands district of Warrington where his remains were found, because his true identity could not be confirmed at the time. | Detectives named the infant Callum after the Callands district of Warrington where his remains were found, because his true identity could not be confirmed at the time. |
| A few months after the baby was found, local people arranged a burial and a funeral service was held. | A few months after the baby was found, local people arranged a burial and a funeral service was held. |
| He was buried in a small white coffin. | He was buried in a small white coffin. |
| Det Insp Hannah Friend said the case shocked the local community. | |
| She said: "Despite his life being cruelly cut short, he has not been forgotten, and his memory has lived on in the local area for the past few decades. | |
| "Likewise, our efforts to locate who did this to him have not wavered and the case was subject to regular reviews and refreshed searches of the police DNA database." | |
| She added it was thanks to a familial DNA sample that Sharkey was identified, arrested and later charged in relation to baby Callum's death. | |
| Read more stories from Cheshire on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC North West on X. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. | Read more stories from Cheshire on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC North West on X. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. |