Laura Heath is on trail for manslaughter over the death of her seven-year-old son
Shocking pictures displayed in court show how a mum addicted to heroin and crack used her son’s inhaler to smoke drugs before he died from a fatal asthma attack.
Laura Heath is currently on trial for manslaughter following the death of her seven-year-old son, Hakeem Hussain, in November 2017.
A court heard how the youngster’s body was found in near-freezing conditions in the garden of a house on Cook Street in Nechells, Birmingham. Two ambulances and a paramedic arrived on the scene around 7.30am on November 26 but the schoolboy could not be saved.
Heath is accused of fatally neglecting her son as well as having exposing him to heroin and crack cocaine through her drug use. Photographs released by West Midlands Police show Hakeem’s asthma inhaler pumps wrapped in foil next to “drug paraphernalia”.
Coventry Crown Court heard how the 39-year-old would “source heroin and crack cocaine” as her “first priority in life” ahead of the welfare of her son. Hakeem was also said to have been made to sleep on a sofa in squalid conditions and jurors were told that his jumper and school uniforms reeked of urine and cigarettes.
Further distressing photos were shown to the jury which depicted two cramped houses where Heath and Hakeem stayed cluttered with rubbish.
Heath and Hakeem are thought to have moved from a property on Long Acre to the house on Cook Street, going back and forth between the two where images showed piles of bags and boxes loaded into a cot, as well as other “unclean” rooms which were said to have “smelled of raw smoke.”
Hakeem’s breathing reportedly got worse “day by day” and the night before he was found dead he had gone outside alone to get some air. No medication was found with his body and a post-mortem concluded his cause of death was an acute exacerbation of asthma.
Hakeem was also known to social services and had been flagged as a “vulnerable” case due to previously raised concerns regarding “neglect, attendance issues, and his home life”.
A child protection meeting was held two days before his death where a school nurse had warned Hakeem was at risk of death and should be removed from his mum’s custody.
Friends also told the court how they witnessed Heath smoking class A drugs while Hakeem was feeling ill in the next room – just 24 hours before he died.
Heath has admitted four counts of child cruelty relating to neglect, failing to provide Hakeem with proper medical supervision, and exposing him to heroin and crack cocaine.
Heath, who still has no fixed address, denies gross negligence manslaughter. Her trial is ongoing.
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