AN open verdict has been recorded in the inquest of a baby who died within hours of being born.

Kyla-Rose Cansdale, also known as Kyla-Rose Mora, was born following an emergency caesarean section at Colchester General Hospital on February 7 2014 but died hours later after suffering several cardiac arrests.

Mother Carla Mora was admitted to hospital suffering from bleeding and admitted that she had taken drugs in the days before the birth.

Doctors managed to resuscitate Kyla-Rose twice but she sadly died after an unsuccessful third attempt.

Dr Nathaniel Carey helped carry out a post mortem examination where high levels of morphine were found in Kyla-Rose’s system and said they had most likely have been passed on from the mother taking drugs in the run up to the birth.

He said: “There is not enough evidence to be sure but I believe the death is most likely to have resulted from maternal heroin usage.”

Detective inspector Stuart Truss of the Essex Police Child Abuse Investigation Team said his team had interviewed Miss Mora regarding her daughter’s death but she declined to answer any of the questions which were put to her including her and her partner’s drug use and her four other children.

He said: “I made the difficult decision to have her arrested but she refused to answer any of the questions and responded to them all with no comment.

“After discussing the case at length with the Crown Prosection Service we decided we would be unable to prosecute Miss Mora.

“It looks likely the most possible and plausible scenario is that morphine was passed on from mother to baby.

“It is probably an ultimately sad case which resulted in Kyla-Rose’s death.”

Essex coroner Caroline Beasley-Murray said there was not enough evidence to record any other conclusion than an open verdict.

Neither Miss Mora, nor the baby’s father Anthony Cansdale, were present in the coroner’s court despite multiple attempts from staff to contact them on mobile phones and by post in the weeks leading up to the inquest.

Police officers visited their last known address in Nayland Drive, Clacton, on Monday but found new occupants living in the house.

Mrs Beasley-Murray asked efforts were made to make them aware of the verdict.