Police made grieving parents 'feel like criminals' after baby's death

Adam and Stacey Gibbs said they felt like criminals when police arrived at their home after they registered their baby's death. Photo / Google Maps

A grieving couple say they were made to feel like criminals when police officers turned up at their home when they took their baby's body to register her death.

Adam and Stacey Gibbs took their daughter Bethany's body to Birmingham Register Office with them to record her passing before getting the unexpected visit.

Workers at the council called the police to visit the couple, but a spokesman has since said it was intended as a welfare visit, the Daily Mail reported.

The baby lived for just 14 hours at Good Hope Hospital before her death on April 12.

The couple, from Great Barr, were given a refrigerated cot allowing them to have Bethany with them at home until her funeral, to be held at Yardley Cemetery on May 9.

The city council accepted that staff alerted West Midlands Police but insisted their concern was purely for the family's welfare.

West Midlands Police confirmed officers were asked to conduct a welfare check on behalf of the council.

A Birmingham City Council spokesman said: "These are extremely unusual circumstances and our officers wanted to ensure the family is receiving all possible support at this most difficult time.

"Birmingham City Council also has a safeguarding duty and this requires the sharing of information with other agencies, which is why we advised the police."