For today’s case we’re in rugby in warshire England home to the sport of the same name the history of rugby goes back hundreds of years it’s home to nearly 880,000 people and in 2018 one of the people that called it home was Louise Porton a 23-year-old mother of two when Louise turned 18 she gave birth to her first child with Chris Draper a little girl called Lexi Lexi would soon become a big sister when Louise and Chris had a second child another little girl this one named Scarlet Chris and Louis’s relationship would soon sound
and Louise started a new one she also moved to rugby from Willen Hall and cut off Chris’s access to his children he never even met scarlet and Louise told her new partner that he was Scarlet’s Father which was not true this relationship would also fall apart being a young single mother can be tough and challenging at the best of times and as a result Louise had a lot of help from her sister and of family members in looking after her children she lived with Lex and Scarlet in a flat at Beachwood court and she worked
part-time as a model she was on various social networking sites and on one of them she described herself as easy to get along with and open to all types of photo shoots as well as being open to working for pay or trade using the name lollipop she did photo shoots for a variety of things including erotic and glamour modeling another way that she made money was having sex with men and she allowed nothing to get in the way of this she told told one of the men that they could have sex in the room that she shared
with her children providing they were quiet on another occasion while her children slept and supervised she left the flats and had sex with a man in his vehicle as 2017 came to an end and the New Year rolled around on the 2nd of January 2018 her oldest daughter Lexi was admitted to hospital she was struggling to breathe after examining her it was concluded that this was likely the result of a chest infection and she was discharged just 2 days later on the 4th of January paramedics were dispatched to Park Road as Lexi’s
condition had rapidly deteriorated paramedic David Woods Thomas said he had no idea why the child was as ill as she was she was lying flat on her back and her life was saved by the skill and knowledge of the paramedics who performed resuscitation after conducting tests the paramedics believed her condition could be the result of a severe respiratory illness and they described her condition as critical Louise said her daughter had been suffering from seizures one thing did stand out to David while Louise appeared
to be somewhat upset she was not as distressed as one might expect when having a young child so seriously unwell it was again believed to be a chest infection and she was given more antibiotics when she was fit enough Lexi was discharged from hospital the 15th of January 2018 ambulance service is the patient breathing no they’re not breathing no okay and who is it we’re talking about um Lexi she’s three she’s three very okay so she’s unconscious and she’s not breathing so help has been arranged okay the call had been made by Louise
Porton by the time the paramedics arrived at the flat just 9 minutes after the call was placed the property was noticeably cold Mark Mitchell was one of the paramedics on shift and upon entering the flat he called out that they were now on scene Louise said in here from the bedroom and the paramedics headed through Lexi was on the floor by the bed Louise said she had put Lexi in the bath earlier and then found her unresponsive in bed mark tried to open her Airway but her jaw was stiff as was other parts of her body rig and mortise
had started to set in her skin was pale and melted and her lips were blue he knew that it would be fruitless to make any attempts to revive or resuscitate her at 12:50 a.m. her time of death was called Mark had been the one to call her time of death and he told Louise that Lexi had died and that he believed she had actually been dead for some time already Louise burst into tears Mark said she cried for less than a minute before walking out of the bedroom Lexi was wrapped in blankets and Mark carried her out to the amb ambulance she was
driven to University Hospital centry while Louise another paramedic and a police officer sat in the back following this the sudden Unexpected death in infancy and childhood procedures were triggered and her death was investigated to find a cause a postmortem was carried out and specialist doctors were called in to try and determine why she had died no natural cause of death could be determined and the results of the postmortem were pending CCTV had shown her going into the flat with Lise and Scarlet just hours before her death in the footage
she appeared to be happy and chatty losing a child is a pain that many of us cannot even bear to think about but Louise’s Behavior was Raising questions just one day after Lexi had died Louise had been on the dating app meet me and accepted 41 friend requests she had also been on another app B and was messaging various men on there she told one man my little girl passed away yesterday and when he offered his condolences she simply replied it’s all right she had
also arranged a date with another man that night she was cold and flippant about Lexi’s death saying I had to now down to one when she arrived at the funeral home to talk about the plans for Lexi’s service she did not appear to be a young mother who had suffered such a tragedy so recently she was heard laughing and joking and was even FaceTiming a man as investigations into why Lexi had died were carried out Louise and Scarlet were moved to a nearby Hotel just 2 days after going to the funeral home for Lexi and less than
3 weeks after she had died another call was made to the emergency services the 1st of February 2018 Louise had been driving around rugby with her car being seen on Barbie Road dun Church Road and Russell Heim way she then stopped in a petrol station to fill up her car she then pulled into Elliot’s retail Park and made a call to 111 the UK’s alternative medical line that is not for life-threatening emergencies she said she was was in the car and Scarlet was in her car seat not breathing the operator asked if she could wake her and
Louise said she couldn’t she said she had made the decision to call 111 as her daughter’s condition did not seem urgent despite the fact she wasn’t breathing when Scarlet was tended to by the paramedics they were met with every emergency responder’s worst nightmare baby Scarlet was already dead it was clear she had been dead for some time one of the paramedics said that Scarlet was freezing and completely lifeless the paramedics asked what had happened and Louise said she had been diagnosed with the flu and that her
older sister Lexi had died 2 weeks before both of Louise’s daughters were now dead and following Scarlet’s passing Louise was described as being emotionless and calm considering she had lost both her children within Less Than 3 weeks of each other she did not seem distressed or upset her behavior was still detached and cold when asked about what she wanted to do with her daughter’s belongings her response was to yawn with both children now having died it was clear that this was not a tragic coincidence as doctors could find no
natural reason for one of the children to die let alone both of them statuses that Louise’s mother Sharon had posted to Facebook showed that the relationship between the two of them was now incredibly strained and had also become violent on the 11th of March March 2018 Sharon posted the following I really miss you so much but being called a liar hurts me more than my own daughter punching me last night and knocking me on the floor then telling me I’m no mother of hers thanks Lou all I’ve done since my grandkids p is stick
up for you so thanks for hitting me I’ve always been there for you and never ever said a bad word about you so thanks for the punch to my head last night for sticking up for you but no more you’ve really hurt your own mom so thanks Lou just 9 days after these posts there would be a major development the 20th of March 2018 Louise Porton was arrested on suspicion of murdering both her children the results from the post-mortems on both girls had come through and they had confirmed the worst fears of everyone they had died from Airway obstruction
possibly Suffocation and both Lexi and Scarlet were found to have prior injuries suggesting that they had possibly been previously physically attacked baby Scarlet had signs of previous Airway obstruction and there were signs of bleeding in her neck tissue suggesting that there had been significant pressure applied to her Airway the news was shocking Louise Porton had one previous conviction from when she was 15 years old for wasting police time other than that there was nothing on her record had she now become a double
murderer she denied any wrongdoing and said that she had no clue as to why her children had died it was clear that her story was just not adding up and the evidence pointed to this being anything but an accident or tragic coincidence she was released as the investigations continued after Louise was arrested Sharon took to social media to hit back at claims that she knew about what was going on with Louise in her life she said that people were quote spreading [ __ ] about her and she was adamant that she knew nothing on the 28th of March
2018 Louise Porton was back on on social media she changed her profile picture on Facebook and added the caption smile and for haters 3 months after her arrest she had tried to sell bags of her deceased daughter’s clothes for just £20 on Facebook in June 2018 9 months after the deaths of her daughters she wrote on Facebook mommy’s Angels taken from me too soon you will never be forgotten rip she was still maintaining she had nothing to do with their death s the police worked around the clock and continued to build their case against
her and the evidence they found was disturbing Louis’s former land lady from the property she had lived at in wiol from August of 2016 to early November 2017 told the police it was very rare that Louise would ever have the children she would do whatever she could to not have them with her her landl said Louise would often become frustrated and irritable with her children and swear at them she said they would cry and always do what she asked them to do she would tell them to shut the up or she would give them something to cry for on one
occasion Lexi had a temper tantrum and her mom pulled her up by one arm and told her get theu up from the floor the police also looked at the medical evidence surrounding their deaths and they found that when Lexi had first been admitted to hospital her symptoms were consistent with and the result of deliberate Airway obstruction and not a chest infection as had been first believed while Lexi was in hospital Louise had gone to the toilets and and taken sexual photographs of herself in various stages of undress she had also
messaged a photographer and asked for money in return for sexual acts during a photo shoot she said that for £300 he could do whatever he wanted she even swapped messages with the security guard that she had met in accident an emergency with them exchanging 80 messages back and forth all while her daughter was fighting for her life having been resuscitated by paramedics the police would also seize Louise’s phone and this would uncover more damning evidence just one day before Lexi’s death she sent a message to a man
saying I’m just really having a tough time with my three-year-old being ill from that deadly flu doctors telling me she’s going to die no doctor had said any such thing to her it wasn’t just her text messages that were raising alarm Bells several disturbing Google searches had also been made after Lexi was discharged from hospital on the 4th of January including can you actually die if you have a blocked nose and cover your mouth with tape how long after drowning can someone be resuscitated why did my 3-year-old stop breathing she
also visited websites that included articles child revived almost 2 hours after drowning but how and five weird things that happen after you die just hours before she called the Emergency Services about Lexi Louise had Googled how long it took for a body to go cold Louise said that these searches were in no way connected to and had nothing to do with her daughter’s death the evidence just continued to mount in m messages she sent to various people she said she was worried she would lose Scarlet as well but CCTV from
the hotel they were staying in showed that Scarlet appeared to be happy and well then on the 1st of February she messaged a man called Patrick on WhatsApp the messages read as follows any chance of putting 30 in my bank now for fuel to get my daughter Scarlet to hospital I will transfer it back Wednesday she’s not well if you can let me know I’m not losing another I’m not losing another baby Patrick replied call the ambulance don’t waste any time hun Louise said I’ve called told me to make my way can you or not please you’ll get
it back it is believed that Louise had murdered Scarlet in the hotel room before carrying her body out to the car meaning that when she was caught on CCTV putting petrol into her car Scarlet was likely already dead or dying in the back seat Louise later told police that the allegation she was already dead when she was put into the car was entirely false January 2019 one year after Lexi’s death the crown prosecution service approved murder charges against Louise she appeared in a Magistrate’s court in lemington bar and spoke only to confirm
her name date of birth and address she denied the charges and told the police in a prepared statement my children were never an inconvenience to me and I accommodated my lifestyle and personal life around them I still don’t know how my daughter’s died or what caused it it is correct that life as a single mother was financially difficult but I never asked anyone for money and any suggestion that I use my daughter’s ill health or death to make money is wholly inaccurate and wrong as she went through the various
Court proceedings leading up to the trial her father was scolded by a judge for taking a photograph of her through the door of the courtroom photography inside a court is forbidden in the United Kingdom but Louise’s father Jeffrey said he had believed it would be okay if he photographed her from outside of the Court he said he had done it to show Louise’s sister what she looked like as they hadn’t seen each other for some time the judge decided not to impose a punishment on him but did say I am satisfied that you have not acted
through any malicious wish and that this was just an extraordinarily stupid thing to do take this as a warning you’ve had a lucky Escape he also ordered for the pictures to be deleted in July 2019 it was finally time for Louise Porton to go on trial she persisted she was innocent and was not to blame for the deaths of her children she told the court that her daughters always made her laugh and that she loved them dearly she added it’s not one of the easiest things to do but it was something I could cope at they were always giving me something
to do I would take them to places play parks and try to give them everything they wanted when asked why she had been engaging in sexually explicit chats and arranging to meet men for sex in exchange for money she said because I hadn’t been paid at the time from Universal Credit the prosecutor Oliver Saxby QC said no doubt she would have needed time to herself but in the context of what was later to happen in the context of two unexplained deaths consistent with deliberate Airway obstruction it is hard not to draw the
conclusion that for the defendant at times her two children got in the way of her doing what she wanted when she wanted and with whom she wanted the overwhelming influence is that Lexi and Scarlet died because someone deliberately interfered with their breathing that someone can only have been this defendant David the paramedic who had first tended texi on the 4th of January said that when he had been called to the flat again he believed Louise had a glass of wine in her hand he told the court she said that’s the
paramedic who looked after my Lexi before she died she was almost pleased to see me the paramedic Mark who had found Scarlet dead in her car seat also testified saying it was clear that she had been dead for some time before the call was made to the emergency services Louise told the court that she had found it difficult to form emotional attachments and struggle to express her emotions but there was no evidence to suggest that she suffered from any condition that could have explained what she was accused of
doing the court heard that she would regularly ignore her children preferring to message men on dating apps telling some that if they funded her shopping she would send sexual photographs of herself one of Louise’s former friends would later tell a news paper that she would regularly and routinely leave her children with her father so she could go out drinking and partying at the weekend the Google searches were damning evidence as were the many messages she had sent to people claiming the doctors had told her her daughter might die when
they had said no such thing and her saying she was worried she would lose Scarlet when she appeared fine in the CCTV footage the fact she had waited hours before calling the Emergency Services depriving her children of any chance of being resuscitated or helped left people horrified for those present in the courtroom it was a disturbing and devastating case to listen to in August of 2019 at Birmingham Crown Court and following a trial that had lasted 5 weeks after 5 hours of deliberation Louise Porton was
unanimously convicted of two counts of Murder She was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 32 years Mrs Justice Yip called her evil and calculated she said one way or another you squeeze the life out of each of your daughters only calling the Emergency Services when you knew they were dead I’m sure at the time of their deaths you intended to kill each of your daughters why you did so only you will know those who loved Lexi and Scarlet have been left bewildered as to how and why you could have done something so evil these were
blameless young children who were plainly vulnerable and ought to have been able to rely on their mother to protect and nurture them instead you took their young lives away the suggestion that your children got in the way of your lifestyle may make for interesting headlines but it does not truly reflect the evidence at trial your daughters did not hold you back from doing what you wanted the sad truth is the evidence offers no real reason for Lexi and Scarlet’s deaths other than that you their mother decided to end
their lives the judge also said that she believed when Lexi was admitted to hospital with breathing difficulties on the 2nd and fourth of January these were a result of attempts on her life made by her mother Chris Draper Lexi and Scarlet’s father said in an impact statement read on his behalf you were their mother the person supposed to care for them protect them and love them they were just an inconvenience to you how could you do this maybe if Social Services had listened to me they would still be alive today I sit and think day
and night and I can’t understand why my two little girls were taken away because Louise wanted to sleep around I hate no punishment will ever be enough only having a short time with Lexi and never meeting Scarlet makes it all the more heartbreaking we will miss out on all those special occasions they would have celebrated their first day of school birthdays getting married having children of their own the only comfort is that Lexi and Scarlet are together Louise sat with her head resting on her hands looking down at her
feet she didn’t react at all detective superintendent Pete Hill from warshire police said he would never be able to understand why Louise murdered her children she has lied repeatedly to friends family and professionals to cover her tracks and no point throughout the whole investigation has she ever shown any real signs of emotion not content with killing one of her children she did exactly the same to her other daughter I would like to thank the jury they diligently went through the appalling details of Porton crimes they
saw through her lies before returning a guilty verdict Louise Porton is serving her sentence at hmp Boston Hall and will be eligible for parole in January 2051 it has been reported that Louise has been spat at and verbally abused whilst in prison in September 2019 the funeral was held in wara and their coffins were taken by a horr carriage their father Chris paid tribute to them online saying that they were deeply loved and would never be forgotten he finished his post saying sleep tight babies the Daddy’s got you
Daddy will always have your back sleep tight love your daddy following Louis’s conviction her mother Sharon spoke about her daughter something snapped in her head she became a monster my wonderful little girl changed she’s not the happy loving girl I brought up I no longer consider her my daughter she added I cannot believe Social Services didn’t do more they have blood on their hands they could have done so much more Louise didn’t care about Lexi’s death she didn’t give Dam there should be an inquiry into why they
didn’t do more who has made the decision that everything is okay with Louis’s family and that they can be left alone Scarlet needed to be taken away for her own safety according to Sharon multiple people had called Social Services in the weeks before Lexi’s death but no action had been taken in February 2020 it was reported that 48-year-old Sharon had died from suicide a spokesperson for West mid’s Police said that the police were called after a woman’s body was discovered at an address in Willen Hall the death is
not being treated as suspicious the bond between sisters is special and often unbreakable Lexi and Scarlet should be growing up together and experiencing life with one another they had so much to offer and loads more to do and see the one person that should have protected them took all of those opportunities away to know that they experience such suffering at the hands of their own mother is frankly too horrible to think about one can only hope that as time continues to pass it will give those who loved Lexi and
Scarlet the opportunity to begin to heal for those of you that like to listen on the go we now have our episodes in podcast form and you can now find this via the link in our description box or by searching truly criminal podcast on your podcasting platforms
