British Infant Indi Gregory Dies After Court Denies Request for End-of-Life Care at Home
Parents said authorities ‘did succeed in taking Indi’s body and dignity, but they can never take her soul.’
The family of eight-month-old baby Indi Gregory, diagnosed with a rare incurable mitochondrial disease, who had been battling to halt having her life-support removed, announced that she died early on Monday morning.
The family, which is being represented by Christian Concern, said that Indi was transferred from the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham to a hospice on Saturday with a security escort and police presence.
Indi had been in paediatric intensive care at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham and has been on life support since early September.
In a statement released by Indi’s father, Dean Gregory, during the night, he said: “Indi’s life ended at 01:45 a. m. Claire and I are angry, heartbroken and ashamed. The NHS and the Courts not only took away her chance to live a longer life, but they also took away Indi’s dignity to pass away in the family home where she belonged.
“They did succeed in taking Indi’s body and dignity, but they can never take her soul. They tried to get rid of Indi without anybody knowing, but we made sure she would be remembered forever. I knew she was special from the day she was born.
“Claire held her for her final breaths.”
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Giorgia Meloni
Indi was transferred to the hospice following a ruling made by Court of Appeal judges on Friday, despite a last-minute attempt.
Lord Justice Peter Jackson, Lady Justice Eleanor King and Lord Justice Andrew Moylan, denied Indi’s parents’ request to take Indi home for extubating.
On Friday, Lord Justice Jackson said the appeal was “entirely without merit.”
The judge said evidence showed that “invasive” treatments caused her daily “significant pain and distress.”
He said she showed “no purposeful interaction” with the “world around her.”
“The judge’s (Mr. Justice Peel) approach has been fair and sensible, with decisions based on strong evidence,” he added.
In the week leading to her death, on Monday (Nov. 6), the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, granted Indi Italian citizenship and released a statement saying: “They say there isn’t much hope for little Indi, but until the end, I will do what I can to defend her life. And to defend her mum and dad’s right to do everything they can for her.”
On Friday afternoon, Ms. Meloni wrote to Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Alex Chalk, calling for the two countries to officially collaborate.
On Saturday, a Ministry of Justice told The Epoch Times by email that it could not comment on individual cases, but confirmed that it received the letter from the Italian prime minister, which has been shared with the High Court and the Court of Appeal as requested.
“No one knows for sure what will happen to Indi if treatment is continued. It may be unsuccessful. Equally, the skill of doctors in Italy, experimental trials and treatments or the miraculous intervention of God may give Indi much longer, and some quality of life.
“Indi is made in God’s image, just like you and me … Her parents and siblings clearly love her; we should stand with them and Indi with the practical help they need and in prayer.”
“She’s having multiple procedures daily, she’s being ventilated in an intensive care unit, she’s having to have intravenous access sometimes by drilling into her bones to get fluids in if you can’t get them straight into a vein. And that’s not simple,” he said.
“I do think that the judge has tried very hard to be compassionate. And he recognises that a parent in this situation may never want to give up,” he added.
PA Media contributed to this report.
