A stepmother has been found guilty of killing her three-year-old stepson, but has been acquitted of his murder. Leila Borrington was also convicted of separate charges of assaulting and causing grievous bodily harm to Harvey Borrington.
A Nottingham Crown Court jury, which deliberated for more than 24 hours, cleared Borrington of murder on Tuesday after concluding that she had not intended to kill or cause really serious injury. Returning a total of seven verdicts, jurors also cleared Borrington of three charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The 23-year-old, who will be sentenced on March 16, wiped away tears with the back of her hands after the verdicts. A trial which started on November 16 last year was told Harvey sustained fatal head injuries, including a fractured skull and a bleed on the brain, at Borrington’s home in Main Road, Jacksdale, near Mansfield, on August 7, 2021. He died in hospital two days later.
