A woman has been found guilty of murdering a one-year-old boy who she was hoping to adopt.
Laura Castle, 38, was convicted at Preston Crown Court.
She had previously pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Leiland-James Corkill who died from catastrophic head injuries in January 2021.
Castle said she admitted killing him to “give him justice”.
Leiland-James had been placed with Castle and her husband Scott Castle, 35, by authorities in Cumbria less than five months before his death.
The youngster was a “looked-after child” who was taken into care at birth before he was approved to live with his prospective adoptive parents from August 2020.
Laura Castle rang for an ambulance on 6 January last year and reported the child had fallen off the sofa, hurt his head and was finding it hard to breathe.
However, hospital medics expressed concerns as the scale of his injuries did not match her account.
Leiland-James died the following day as Laura Castle maintained to police, as well as family and friends, that the death was a tragic accident while her husband, a night shift worker, was asleep.
