Mother jailed for murdering brain-damaged son

[muriel_volestrangler]

Source: Reuters

A mother who gave her brain-damaged son a lethal injection of heroin to end his "living hell" was jailed for life on Wednesday after being found guilty of his murder.

Frances Inglis, whose 22-year-old son Tom suffered severe head injuries when he fell out of a moving ambulance, had admitted ending her son's life but denied murder, saying she did it "with love" to end his suffering.
...
The jury, which deliberated for more than six hours, found Inglis guilty of both murder and attempted murder by a majority of 10 to two.

She was sentenced to life with a minimum term of nine years.

Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE60J3TE20100120

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. What a devastating situation. :^(

[hlthe2b]

2. Brain damaged after "falling out of a moving ambulance?"

Seems like that aspect of the story ought to be fleshed out a bit... Damn.

[notesdev]

5. Yeah seriously

How do you fall out of a moving ambulance? They generally have these things called "doors"...

[Warpy]

9. A lot of it needed to be fleshed out

such as how long he was out from the injury, whether or not he was functional, and why the hell she was allowed access after her first attempt.

[SaveOurDemocracy]

10. Link to more info:

Miranda Moore QC, prosecuting, said it was a ‘tragic case’, which began in July 2007 when Thomas was left in a deep coma after jumping out of the back of an ambulance travelling at 30mph and hitting his head on the road.
At the time, he was being taken to hospital as ‘walking wounded’ after a‘disturbance’.
He underwent


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1240828/Mother-Frances-Inglis-gave-brain-damaged-son-lethal-heroin-injection-mercy-killing-bail-previous-attempt-life.html#ixzz0dB69eUN3

[hlthe2b]

11. Wow... dramatically changes the interpretation of this case...

It is unbelievable that the story of her conviction did not mention any of these details.

[SaveOurDemocracy]

12. Even to the "fell out of ambulance" ...

More media manipulation.

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. Well, no, they are irrelevant to this case

It makes no difference how he got into his state (no-one ever suggested it was because of her). This case is about what she decided to do. If you think this changes the interpretation, in what way? How did you interpret it before you read the Mail story, and how afterwards?

[hlthe2b]

17. Did you read the article? My interpretation is based on the

actual facts of the case that were not presented at all in the OP's linked article. While I was curious how someone was injured falling out of an ambulance, that is not the issue. That article newly linked goes into the history of the mother's attempts to kill him, the fact that he was being cared for and had shown some improvement, etc., etc.

Please read the article before jumping to conclusion about my statement. It is really annoying as I had made no conclusion on the initial OP linked story because of its lacking ANY damned facts! That original article was HORRIBLY INCOMPLETE reporting--that is the point.

[muriel_volestrangler]

18. You seemed to be commenting on what was written in the post you replied to

which was purely about whether he fell or jumped (which is, itself, disputed by the mother - see http://www.bdpost.co.uk/content/barkinganddagenham/post/news/story.aspx?brand=BDPOnline&category=news&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=newsbdp&itemid=WeED14%20Jan%202010%2009%3A11%3A09%3A133). You didn't say what 'these details' were, so I assumed they were the ones that had been highlighted by actually being posted here. It's only now I know you're talking about the details of how she tried to kill him earlier (mentioned, but not detailed, in the link from the OP) or that he was being cared for (though why would you think no-one was caring for him?) and had improved before her first attempt to kill him. The Mail link is the details of one of the days in court. You can't expect Reuters to repeat the details from the whole of the trial (which had several more days than just the one in the Mail article, of course).

What you describe as 'facts' from the Mail article are actually the opening statement from the prosecution from a couple of weeks ago. They are the outline of the prosectution case, before any witnesses are called. So it's not necessarily a good idea to take that as 'fact'.

[hlthe2b]

19. I complained about the article (you posted) providing no facts..

YOU jumped to the conclusion based on your preconceived notions..I won't be responding to you again.

[muriel_volestrangler]

20. No, you didn't say 'no facts' in the OP, you said 'these details' in the Mail article

and that was the only clue you gave as to what you were talking about. 'These' refers to something already under discussion. When you don't specify what 'these' means, people will assume it's something already pointed out, rather than something which no-one has mentioned yet.

The OP did, of course, provide facts - the conviction, the sentence and more. Because that's what happened today (this is LBN, after all), rather than the opening speech from 2 weeks ago.

[hlthe2b]

25. You really relish starting arguments, don't you?

count me out...

[barb162]

26. Yeah, seeing how ambulances are several feet long, etc

oops just read another post which explains the facts more clearly...he jumped out.

[tonysam]

3. I am shocked, truly shocked, I tell you

After all, when a murder is committed against somebody who is profoundly disabled, it isn't murder, for it is an act of "mercy."

You know, their lives aren't worth living and they are better off dead. Mom should have been a national hero for knocking her worthless son off.

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. When this came up a few days ago, many DUers wanted her to be found innocent

I expect that point of view will appear, without sarcasm, before too long here.

[Odin2005]

24. WHAT? UGH!!!

:puke:

[sharesunited]

7. It was certainly possible to convict on a lesser degree and punish more commensurately.

[alcibiades_mystery]

13. She will be released in nine years

Life doesn't mean life in the UK. Earliest release date usually works for all but the most incorrigible predicate felons.

[Odin2005]

23. I hate those sick, disgusting attitudes.

It's the same sick mindset that says I need to be "cured" of my differences, fuck that.

[Cronus Protagonist]

4. Maybe she would have got less if she claimed god told her to do it

Although it's not so easy in the UK to get away with crazy defenses.

[WriteDown]

8. What trimester would this be?

So the disabled lives are not worth living?

[insaniaveritas]

14. asked myself too..

"such as how long he was out from the injury, whether or not he was functional, and why the hell she was allowed access after her first attempt."

I was wondering too.

[dixiegrrrrl]

15. Heroin, huh?

Wonder what the drug history was in the family.

[tinrobot]

27. Yeah. I wouldn't have a clue about where to get heroin.

[BreweryYardRat]

21. So, man falls out of ambulance. Man begins to recover. Man's mother goes insane...

...gives him a massive heroin overdose out of some crazed delusion that he'll automatically be a vegetable -- before he even regains consciousness -- and thus ensures he'll be a vegetable. Then she sneaks back in and finishes the job.

That's not a mercy killing, that's deliberate murder.

[Odin2005]

22. Disgusting. Let her rot in her cell.

This cannot be tolerated, lest people start trying to euthanize us disabled people.

[tblue37]

28. How on earth does someone fall out of a moving ambulance? nt