\n<\/p>\n
Ness suffered a miscarriage just before she was due to have her 12-week scan on April 20 2021.<\/p>\n
She told how she had treasured the ashes for three years. <\/p>\n
“They had sat on my shelf next to my baby scan,” said Ness.<\/p>\n
In court, prosecutor Chris Paxton KC said “the ashes that Lucy was given could not have been those of her baby”.<\/p>\n
The barrister did not state that they were of animal origin.<\/p>\n
Ness was clear to the BBC, however, that police had told her the ashes were animal remains.<\/p>\n
Her disgust at Bush was clear.<\/p>\n
She said: “How can somebody with a duty of care do this to my family?”<\/p>\n
She and her partner, Callum Ellerby, were told their baby was cremated on 10 May 2021. <\/p>\n
“We didn’t know the gender,” said Ness. “We were not going to know the gender.” <\/p>\n
The day after the cremation was meant to have taken place, Bush, from Legacy Independent Funeral Directors, rang her and asked her to collect the ashes, which she did.<\/p>\n
They were contained in a white china urn with a teddy bear embossed on it, Ness recalled.<\/p>\n
When Humberside Police announced they were investigating Legacy in March 2024, Ness rang the helpline set up for anyone concerned.<\/p>\n
The force then contacted her to say the ashes she had in her home could not be that of her baby, she said.<\/p>\n
Officers explained to Ness that they had checked records at the crematorium and found Bush collected the baby’s ashes on 13 May – two days after he had presented Ness and Ellerby with the urn.<\/p>\n
She said: “I have felt very up and down. This has definitely impacted on my mental health.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n