Jade accused 'wanted drugs moved'

Jade died after taking the tablets

A man accused of killing a 10-year-old girl who died after taking five Ecstasy tablets has told a court he telephoned his girlfriend to make sure the pills were out of harm's way.

Jade Slack died in hospital last July after taking the tablets which she had found while visiting a house near her home in Galgate, near Lancaster.

Wayne Wood, 22, of Galgate, had left the pills tucked under a living room couch after spending the night at the house with his then girlfriend, Rebecca Hodgson.

But Mr Wood told a jury at Manchester Crown Court on Monday how he had phoned his girlfriend telling her to move them.

Mr Wood and Ms Hodgson, 21, of Lancaster, are both charged with Jade's manslaughter on the basis that they had a duty of care not to expose the schoolgirl to the Class A drug.

'Out of sight'

Giving evidence, Mr Wood told the court how he had left the pills out of sight under the sofa following a night out with Ms Hodgson.

I was aware there were people around and I wanted (the tablets) in a safer place Wayne Wood

Both were regular Ecstasy users.

"I remembered that they were there. I hadn't normally left them there. I was aware there were people around and I wanted them in a safer place," he said.

In a second call, he then checked that the pills had been moved and that all 35 were still in the packet.

Ecstasy poisoning

He said Ms Hodgson told him they were.

When Dundee-born Mr Wood returned to Ms Hodgson's house around 1430 BST, he was told Jade had taken five of the tablets after finding them in an upstairs bedroom.

She was later taken to hospital, where she died from Ecstasy poisoning.

Earlier, Mr Justice Morland directed the jury to ignore allegations that Mr Wood and Ms Hodgson's failure to call an ambulance for Jade had been a significant cause of her death.

The case continues.