Gynaecologist Dr. Hector Catty is charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm by performing an unnecessary caesarean operation on Deidre Thomson. His midwife Winifred Horton is charged with aiding and abetting him. Miss Thomson had originally consulted him seeking an abortion. He had rejected her request but recommended adoption to which she agreed at the time. She now says in court that she changed her mind. However the prosecution allege that he prevented a natural birth and carried out a caesarean section to prevent her from bonding with the newborn child. They claim he then sold the baby for adoption. He denies the charge and asserts that the operation was wholly necessary as a result of poor medical treatment by Miss Boden, another midwife. He accepts acting as a negotiator for adoptions but insists he never charges for the service.
—Alan Briscoe