Keeley Barnard, 52, is alleged to have murdered her 70-year-old mother Margaret Sims (pictured) at her sister’s home in Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, after a night of drinking
A daughter accused of strangling her Alzheimer’s stricken mother so hard she broke a bone in her neck has claimed she smothered herself with a pillow.
Keeley Barnard, 52, is alleged to have murdered her 70-year-old mother Margaret Sims at her sister’s home in Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, after a night of drinking.
She is accused of getting into bed with Mrs Sims and then throttling her as she lie helpless, Chelmsford Crown Court heard.
Mrs Sims, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2014, was staying at the home of her youngest daughter, Amanda Hollocks, on Sunday, August 20, the night that she died.
Barnard, from Chelmsford, was also staying at her sister and brother-in-law’s home, following alleged relationship issues she was having with her husband, the court heard.
During the day the family had gone out for lunch then came home to watch a film and put Mrs Sims to bed in the early evening.
However, she wouldn’t settle down and came back downstairs later that night.
She was then taken back to bed and Mrs Hollocks fell asleep downstairs, while her husband, Donald Killpatrick, fell asleep in their bedroom upstairs.
Mr Killpatrick woke up at around 11pm and went downstairs to find his wife asleep on the sofa. After he woke her, the pair began to make their way upstairs when they heard Barnard shouting.
They claimed she was saying: ‘Mum’s not breathing, mum’s not breathing.’
Mr Killpatrick, a trained first-aider, rushed upstairs and began performing CPR on Mrs Sims before paramedics were called to the property.
The prosecution said whilst Mr Killpatrick was performing CPR, Barnard spoke to the emergency services operator on the phone and said: ‘I don’t think there is any chance of resuscitation. I have seen a dead body before.’
The controller then asked what had happened, to which Barnard allegedly replied: ‘Well my mum had a pillow over her face so it, she had Alzheimer’s, and she’s just passed away.’
Barnard is accused of getting into bed with Mrs Sims and then throttling her as she lie helpless, Chelmsford Crown Court (pictured) heard
Andrew Jackson, prosecuting, opened his case to the jury on Monday.
He said: ‘The prosecution’s case is that the defendant had been drinking that night, she was sharing a bed with her mother and soon after getting into the bed, she strangled her.
‘She actually broke one of the bones at the back of her mother’s throat.
Having done that and having left her mother laying in the bed, the defendant then told her sister and brother-in-law that their mother had suddenly died.
‘When police officers arrived on the scene, she told them that her mother had put a pillow on her own face and had stopped breathing.’
Dr Virginia Fitzpatrick-Swallow, a pathologist, conducted a postmortem to determine the cause of death.
Mr Jackson told the jury: ‘She found a number of tell-tale features, all of which happened to the fact that Mrs Sims had been strangled to death, with cause of death as compression of the neck caused by strangulation with use of one or two hands.’
Prior to Mrs Sims’ diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, the court heard she was an outgoing and friendly woman who was very active and took great pride in her appearance.
Unfortunately, since 2014, her illness became progressively worse and she changed dramatically.
Her husband, Terry, gave up his job so that he could care for his wife full-time while Mrs Hollocks would cook meals for them each week.
Mrs Hollocks would also have her mother stay one weekend every month to offer her step-father respite.
Paramedics arrived 12.02am in the early hours of Sunday, August 20, but Mrs Sims did not recover and she was pronounced dead at 12.22.
Barnard was arrested later that afternoon following the results of the postmortem examination and interviewed the following day.
Before the police interview she was informed of the pathologist’s results, showing that her mother had died of strangulation.
She admitted to the police she suffered with depression and had a drinking problem, consuming alcohol before getting into bed with her mother on the night in question.
The prosecution told the jury that Barnard had ‘given a different account to the emergency controller and police officers at the scene.
She said that her mother had been choking and without switching a light on, she tried opening her mother’s airways by putting a finger or fingers down her throat.
‘She said she had blown into her mother’s mouth, demonstrating how she had put both of her hands around her mother’s neck to stop her choking, then performed chest compressions before raising the alarm.’
The postmortem also showed signs of facial injuries and abrasions to the mouth and neck.
Mr Jackson told the court: ‘The scratches on her neck are of a person having scratched themselves whilst trying to move the hands of the person strangling them, to relieve the pressure of the throat.
‘Some of the injuries were caused by blunt force impact. The prosecution says that Mrs Sims was hit, as well as a bone of the back of the throat being broken during the course of the strangulation.
‘The prosecution say that evidence that you all hear will leave you in no doubt that this defendant strangled her own mother to death with her own hands.’
The first prosecuting witness was called to take the stand, with Mrs Hollocks, Barnard’s sister, giving evidence from behind a screen.
Judge Patricia Lynch QC, informed the jury that the special measures in place for the witness were not because the witness was intimidated or vulnerable against Barnard.
She explained the special measures were in place to ensure Mrs Hollocks was comfortable and would give the best evidence she could.
Defence counsel, Michael Levy, questioned the witness about the daughters’ relationship with their mother.
He asked: ‘You were closer to mum than Keeley was?’
Mrs Hollocks said: ‘Yes.’
Mr Levy said: ‘Perhaps its always been like that?’
Mrs Hollocks replied: ‘Since my dad died, I remember being a lot closer to my mum.
‘She was my best friend. I did lots with my mum.’
Mr Levy then questioned Mrs Hollocks regarding the power of attorney for Mrs Sims.
She confirmed that she has had power of attorney of her will since August 2016, a year before her mother died.
She also confirmed that the will stated that if her mother died, Mrs Hollocks would receive the wedding and engagement rings, Mr Sims would receive the house, and other jewellery and belongings would then be divided into three for Barnard, Mrs Hollocks and Mrs Sims’ stepdaughter.
Mr Levy said: ‘Keeley didn’t stand to make a lot of money, in case anyone was wondering, from the death of her mother.’
The defence then asked the witness about another condition that Mrs Sims was diagnosed with, Hiatus Hernia, which is a form of acid reflux that enters the throat.
Mrs Hollocks told the court that her mother had daily medication which helps ease the symptoms, and she had taken it the day that she died.
The next witness to take the stand was Mr Killpatrick, who performed CPR on Mrs Sims the night that she died.
He told the court that he heard Barnard shouting and rushed upstairs to where Mrs Sims was laying. He continued to perform CPR until paramedics arrived and took over.
He admitted that he was not aware whether or not the light was on in the room, who had called the emergency services or if Barnard spoke to the 999 operator.
He also said that he had ‘not seen any facial injuries’ as he was ‘not paying attention’ at the time of trying to save his mother-in-law’s life.
The trial continues.
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