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A twenty-eight-year-old mother who fatally burned her infant daughter using a domestic hairdryer has been jailed for six years following a sentencing hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh. Courtney Gartshore subjected her three-month-old child, Dahlia-Rose, to intense, prolonged heat over her head and body at their home in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, in September 2023. The sentencing brings an end to a protracted judicial process after a jury at the High Court in Aberdeen convicted her of culpable homicide.
Emergency services were first dispatched to a residential property in Peterhead on 30 September 2023 following an urgent call from the Scottish Ambulance Service alerting officers to an unresponsive child. Paramedics and medical personnel attended the scene, but Dahlia-Rose could not be revived. Police Scotland immediately launched an extensive inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the infant's sudden death.
Investigators determined that the child had sustained critical thermal trauma while under the sole care of Gartshore. Following multi-agency inquiries, detectives arrested and formally charged the mother in November 2023.
During the trial proceedings held in Aberdeen, medical evidence demonstrated that Dahlia-Rose suffered catastrophic burns covering eighteen per cent of her body surface area, with severe thermal damage concentrated on her head. Daily Dazzling Dawn understands that the jury was spared from viewing graphic photographic evidence during the presentation of medical reports due to the distressing nature of the physical trauma.
The legal defence maintained during the trial that the infant might have passed away before the thermal injuries were inflicted. However, jurors rejected this argument, returning a unanimous guilty verdict in just over an hour. Gartshore was convicted of culpably and recklessly subjecting her daughter to significant and sustained heat, directly causing her death.
Presiding judge Simon Collins characterized the incident during the Edinburgh sentencing hearing as uniquely disturbing and distressing. The court observed that the actions leading to the loss of a defenceless child represented a profound breach of parental duty, concluding that a custodial sentence of six years was appropriate given the severity of the culpable homicide conviction.
Senior investigating officers reflected on the emotional weight of the protracted inquiry following the sentencing conclusion. Detective Inspector James Callander of Police Scotland emphasized that defenceless children require absolute protection, highlighting the disturbing nature of a fatal act committed by a primary caregiver.
Daily Dazzling Dawn learned that investigative teams expressed formal gratitude to the Peterhead community for assisting with key information throughout the formal enquiry. The statutory authorities confirmed that the conclusion of court proceedings establishes legal accountability while marking the end of a deeply distressing chapter for the local area.
For more context on the courtroom proceedings and official updates, see the Mum found guilty of killing baby daughter with hairdryer report covering the trial verdict in Aberdeen.
This video provides direct broadcast coverage and official police statements recorded following the jury's verdict at the High Court in Aberdeen.
