Faces of killers who took the lives of the people they were supposed to care about most

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John Meadows

John Meadows killed his partner, Jillian Hughes, 57, while they were visiting the Isle of Man with Jillian's family earlier this year. At around 9.20pm on Friday March 29, an altercation occurred outside the Palace Hotel on Central Promenade, Douglas^[3]. During the incident, Meadows hit Jillian who sadly died in hospital following the attack.

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The 53-year-old, of Verney Crescent in Allerton^[4], was jailed on Friday, October 11 for five years and eight months after pleading guilty to manslaughter at Douglas Courthouse^[5]. Despite going to prison, his sentence has been criticised by many with several branding it "shocking".

Following Meadows' sentencing, Detective Superintendent Steve Maddocks, of Isle of Man Constabulary said: "On Friday 29 March 2024, Jillian (Jill) Hughes from Kirkby^[6] in Liverpool, travelled to the Isle of Man with members of her family, including her granddaughter, for what should have been an enjoyable Easter weekend holiday.

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"Jill never returned home after she was killed by her partner, John Meadows. It is clear having met Jill’s family that the huge void that has been left by her death will never be filled. They are a close, loving family and life will never be the same for them, especially for Jill’s mum and dad, sister, brother and three daughters.

"The family have been dignified throughout what must be a truly awful time. I would like to thank my team for all their hard work and dedication and also our colleagues in Merseyside Police family liaison officers and victim support both on the Island and in the UK for helping to get justice for Jill."

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Natalie Bennett

Natalie Bennett killed her partner, Kasey Anderson, a week before his 25th birthday in March last year^[7] after slashing him several times with a knife and leaving him with two stab wounds. The 47-year-old killer plunged a knife into his heart before attempting to stab him in the head as he lay gravely injured in the neighbour's driveway.

He pleaded for help, telling a 999 call handler "he was dying". Bennett then claimed to police Kasey had arrived at her home on Carr Lane East in Croxteth^[8] "like that". His death followed a campaign of domestic abuse during which Kasey suffered bruises and black eyes.

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His dad, Graham Anderson, and stepmum, Jackie Morrey, 39, tried everything to rescue him from her clutches, even warning Kasey she would eventually kill him. Their fears were tragically realised. When she was jailed for life, Bennett bizarrely gave a thumbs up in court in November last year.

Graham, 61, from Croxteth said: “Kasey was a really lovely lad, happy and kind-hearted. He loved fishing and playing football and he was in Everton’s academy. But when he met Bennett, he completely changed.

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"She took the light out of his eyes. He came home with black eyes and bruises but the more we begged him to leave her, the more she got her claws in. If there is anyone out there, fighting a battle with domestic abuse, man or woman, speak out and get help.

"Don’t leave it too late. Speaking up is not a weakness, it is the biggest strength you can show. Please don’t let your families go through what we are going through.”

Last week Natalie Bennett applied for permission to appeal her 18-year minimum prison term for the murder of her boyfriend Kasey Anderson. The Court of Appeal confirmed to the ECHO the hearing is over a "renewed application for leave to appeal against sentence and for a Representation Order".

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Emma Walsh

Emma Walsh was jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years for the murder of her partner Gary Morgan. Walsh knifed the 36-year-old to death at her home on Lavan Close in Everton^[9] on the evening of April 10 2022.

Walsh was unanimously convicted of murder by a jury after only one hour and 37 minutes of deliberations. The 31-year-old was sentenced in October 2022^[10] at Liverpool Crown Court,^[11] where she sat turned away from the public gallery at all times during the hearing.

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Following the sentencing^[12], Gary's family issued a statement urging other men to come forward if they are suffering from domestic violence from their partner. They said "coming forward is not a sign of weakness, it is a sign of strength".

Sentencing Walsh, the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said: "You and he (Mr Morgan) had been in a relationship for about a year before that fatal night. It began well enough, and there will have been good times.

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"But for much of its existence it was a tempestuous relationship marked by frequent, unpleasant arguments. I have no doubt that many of these were the result of your extreme, irrational jealousy and your consequent desire to dominate Gary Morgan's life and to restrict his movements."

Amanda McDonnell

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Amanda McDonnell left her boyfriend Gerard Hand with a fatal knife wound to the chest after picking up the weapon in self-defence, having become embroiled in a drunken row at a friend's flat on Church Walk in Bootle^[13]. After being found cradling her dying partner in her arms, she told police officers that a "fella had jumped in through the window and attacked him".

Liverpool Crown Court^[14] heard on June 28 this year that the couple lived together in a two-bedroom apartment at Stanley House on Washington Parade in Bootle, which was tenanted by 44-year-old Mr Hand. But their relationship was described as being "volatile and characterised by a mutual dependence on alcohol".

Shortly before 1.30am on November 22 2023, both parties visited a Shell petrol station on Derby Road with their dog and bought alcohol for themselves and a homeless man on the forecourt. They were then seen on CCTV leaving towards the adjacent Church Walk, where they entered the ground floor flat of a friend named Darren Edwards via the window, as the other male walked away in the direction of Crosby^[15].

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The night cashier at the garage recalled McDonnell then returning at around 6am with a red mark near to one of her eyes and a slash mark to the top of her chest. The 44-year-old purchased more alcohol and cigarettes before leaving again.

When emergency services arrived, McDonnell spouted a web of lies, telling police that a "f***ing fella came in and f***ing attacked him through the window" and added: "He jumped through the window and just attacked him. He was at the garage, they might have a security camera."

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McDonnell was told she was being taken into custody at Copy Lane Police Station, at which stage she stated "I haven't done nothing to him". The kitchen knife used to inflict the stab wound was subsequently recovered from a drawer in the kitchen.

Mr Hand was meanwhile rushed to Aintree^[16] Hospital by air ambulance in a critical condition, having suffered a two to three inch wound under his left armpit. He was pronounced dead at around 10.45am the same day.

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Stuart Robertson

Stuart Robertson strangled his wife to death before placing a crucifix in her lifeless hands and visiting Costa Coffee for a cup of tea. Robertson went on trial at Liverpool Crown Court^[17] on May 14 accused of the murder of his partner Dawn.

She was found dead aged 62 at the couple's house on Cannon Street in St Helens^[18] on November 15 last year after her husband walked into a police station and told officers that he had killed her. He boarded an Arriva bus into St Helens town centre and "paused for a cup of tea" at a branch of Costa Coffee.

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Shortly before 3.45pm, he entered St Helens Police Station and confessed that he had "snapped" and strangled his wife to death after she had been abusive to him and shouted at him. The 69-year-old was unanimously cleared of her murder^[19] but was jailed for six years after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

Robertson, who will be required to serve at least two thirds of this term behind bars before becoming eligible for release on licence, nodded as he was imprisoned and mouthed the words "thank you" as he was led down to the cells. A statement was read out to the court during his sentencing hearing^[20] on behalf of the couple's daughter Licia Christian and son Michael Robertson.

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Dealing with grief and loss

If you have been affected by any of the details mentioned in this story there are people who can help you.

Most people grieve when they lose something or someone important to them.

The way grief affects you depends on lots of things, including what kind of loss you have suffered, your upbringing, your beliefs or religion, your age, your relationships, and your physical and mental health.

Grieving is a totally normal process but there are way to get help if you need support.

Your GP is a good place to start. They can give you advice about other support services, refer you to a counsellor, or prescribe medication if needed.

Or you can contact support organisations directly, such as Cruse Bereavement Care^[21] (0808 808 1677) Samaritans^[22] (116 123) or Love Jasmine^[23].

In it, they described how they had "both left home at a young age to build a life without chaos" and added: "We have lost our mum and dad in one night. We have both struggled to understand. This is still our dad.

"We unfortunately have no other family members. You took a life that you had no right to take. Your issues as a couple should never have got this far. Now you have to live with what you have done."

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Joanna Moran

Joanna Moran, who murdered her partner after a drunken argument "about nothing", was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 17 years in April 2023. Moran's partner, Jonathan Gibbons, was knifed in the heart at the couple's home on Bridge Road in Litherland^[24] in the early hours of October 30 last year.

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A previous trial heard on October 30, 2022^[25], at about 4.45am, emergency services received a phone call from Moran reporting that a man had been stabbed and the caller was requesting assistance to attend their home on Bridge Road. Mr Gibbons and the defendant had been in a relationship since 2016 and had lived at the address for around four years, where they had been playing cards and drinking since 3pm the day before.

Moran called the police after she stabbed Mr Gibbons using a small black handled knife following a drunken argument between the pair. She told officers “I just stabbed my partner” and repeatedly said “I’m sorry” immediately after.

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Sentencing, The Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said^[26] he believed Moran's intention "probably was to cause grievous bodily harm rather than to kill, and the attack was not planned or premeditated." He continued: "I accept that you now deeply regret what you have done, and may well be at a complete loss to explain to yourself never mind others, why you have behaved in this way.

“But you must have known that you had an explosive temper, and were prone to use violence, especially in drink, though of course you had never used such serious violence in the past. There had been warnings in the past but it seems you were unwilling or unable to change... The sentence is, therefore, one of life imprisonment."

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Gary Toomey

Gary Toomey killed his ex-girlfriend by "yanking" on the handbrake of her Audi as she drove on the motorway after a "feeling in his gut just exploded." Victoria Bell died aged 34 after her vehicle crashed into the central reservation of the M62, being struck by another car as she attempted to flee to safety on the hard shoulder.

It came after she and her "on off" partner Gary Toomey had rowed while attending a music festival. The 37-year-old claims that his fatal actions were a "spontaneous reaction to stop the car in order to get away from the ongoing argument" and says he "was not intending to cause any harm".

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Ms Bell had been driving her Audi A3 eastbound on the M62 between junction seven of the motorway at Rainhill^[27] and junction eight at Burtonwood, Warrington^[28], at around 11.30pm on September 24 2021. Gary Toomey deliberately pulled on the handbrake and caused the vehicle to crash into the central reservation.

Although Toomey was able to get out of the vehicle and "make his way to safety" on a grass verge at the side of the motorway, she was struck by another vehicle as she attempted to cross the carriageway. At Liverpool Crown Court in August this year, Toomey admitted manslaughter. He was jailed for seven years and four months, a term of which he must serve at least two thirds behind bars.

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Kevin Marsh

A "callous and dishonest" dad killed his girlfriend in a horror crash then tried to pin the blame on her. Kevin Marsh drank gin and snorted cocaine as he watched a Bear Grylls show on Netflix hours before getting behind the wheel^[29].

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When he did so, he smashed his Ford Fiesta into a bin lorry in a head-on crash. His partner Michelle Atherton died aged 47 in the crash^[30]. Marsh attempted to pin the blame on her, claiming that she had grabbed the steering wheel immediately beforehand.

But he was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving following a trial at Liverpool Crown Court^[31] back in January of this year, having admitted the lesser charge of causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs. The unanimous verdict was delivered after two hours and 41 minutes of deliberations by a jury of four men and eight women.

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Judge David Aubrey KC, who presided over the trial, told him he faced an "inevitable custodial sentence" and added: "I am satisfied so that I am sure that Michelle Atherton did not grab the steering wheel of the Ford Fiesta or make any attempt so to do. I am sure so that I am satisfied that the evidence that was placed before the jury in that regard was a callous, dishonest attempt by you to seek to blame the deceased by suggesting that she contributed to her own death.

"I am satisfied that you were the sole cause of her death." The father-of-three stood with his head bowed and appeared emotional, having been seen wiping away tears earlier in the hearing, as he was jailed for 16 years by Judge David Aubrey KC.

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Liam Cain

Liam Cain was locked up for life with a minimum term of 17 years for the murder of his girlfriend, Courtney Boorne. The teenager was found unanimously guilty of murdering Courtney by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court after one hour and nine minutes of deliberations.

She was heard screaming out of the window of the couple's 14th storey flat on Quarry Green Heights in Kirkby moments before police discovered her lifeless body on a bed inside, having been strangled to death aged 20. She was rushed to Aintree Hospital, but was pronounced dead at 7.02pm.

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A post-mortem investigation later found that she had suffered a cardiac arrest "because of the asphyxia, the strangulation, the smothering of her by this defendant". Cain was arrested after being found "crouched down, leaning on an armchair in the living room" with "scratch marks" on his head and face. The 19-year-old, from Anfield^[32], had sent a text to his dad saying: "I love you the world, everyone. I'm so sorry. Tell everyone."

Cain claimed to have been acting in self-defence after Ms Boorne allegedly attacked him with a plant pot, a brush and a kitchen knife - apparently angered by a series of phone calls he had received from an unknown number. However records showed no such contact on the killer's mobile, while the objects he had reportedly been assaulted with were found in positions which contradicted his account.

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Robert Massey

Robert Massey who walked free from court after pouring vodka over his girlfriend and threatening to set her on fire then went on to brutally murder her two weeks later. Massey subjected Jacqueline Forest to vile abuse after attempting to kick down her front door.

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By the end of the month, he had strangled her to death before stabbing her brutally in the womb, "preoccupied" with the thought that she was pregnant. He then proceeded to scrawl profanities over her skin with a pen.

Liverpool Crown Court heard in November 2022 that the 49-year-old victim had been in a relationship with the defendant since the summer of 2020 and he had spent time living at her home on Piele Road in Haydock^[33]. On August 15 2023, Massey was handed an 18-month community order at Liverpool Magistrates' Court after assaulting her and banned from attending her address for 28 days.

But the couple met up again in a park over the subsequent August bank holiday weekend and spent much of the next few days together, mostly in her home. At around 7pm on Tuesday, August 30, Massey was in her bed while she was in the shower.

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He began looking through her phone and found messages which "suggested she had been unfaithful with two other men" - namely Anthony Murphy and Graham Roberts, the latter of whom he considered to be his "best friend". The killer later confessed to police that he "saw red" and attacked Ms Forest by confronting her when she got out of the shower, grabbing her by the neck and "straddling her" on the bed.

Massey repeatedly struck her to the head and face with his fists then placed both hands around her neck, squeezed and "didn't stop" until she "went floppy". He then headbutted her and said: "Was it worth it? Was it worth s***ging them two people?"

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The murderer then covered her dead body with a towel, placed a watch on her wrist and Moschino shoes on her feet, put a handbag over her arm and sunglasses over her face and positioned a jewellery box on top of her. Massey subsequently explained to officers that he had "ruined her beautiful face and decided to put some nice things on her because she always used to look pretty".

But after finding a pregnancy test nearby, Massey stabbed her in the womb with a kitchen knife - although it was later confirmed that she had not been expecting a baby. Then, he took a green pen and wrote "my best mate" next to this wound before scrawling "slag" on one thigh and the word "baby" on the other. Massey was jailed for life with a minimum term of 28 years.

References

1. ^{^} Tributes pour in for mascot who 'put a smile on the face of so many' (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
2. ^{^} Man jailed after firearm found in front yard (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
3. ^{^} an altercation occurred outside the Palace Hotel on Central Promenade, Douglas (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Allerton (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
5. ^{^} jailed on Friday, October 11 for five years and eight months after pleading guilty to manslaughter at Douglas Courthouse (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
6. ^{^} Kirkby (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
7. ^{^} a week before his 25th birthday in March last year (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
8. ^{^} Croxteth (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
9. ^{^} Lavan Close in Everton (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
10. ^{^} in October 2022 (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
11. ^{^} Liverpool Crown Court, (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
12. ^{^} Following the sentencing (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
13. ^{^} Bootle (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
14. ^{^} Liverpool Crown Court (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
15. ^{^} Crosby (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
16. ^{^} Aintree (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
17. ^{^} Liverpool Crown Court (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
18. ^{^} St Helens (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
19. ^{^} unanimously cleared of her murder (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
20. ^{^} sentencing hearing (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
21. ^{^} Cruse Bereavement Care (www.cruse.org.uk)
22. ^{^} Samaritans (www.samaritans.org)
23. ^{^} Love Jasmine (www.lovejasmine.org.uk)
24. ^{^} Litherland (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
25. ^{^} A previous trial heard on October 30, 2022 (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
26. ^{^} The Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
27. ^{^} Rainhill (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
28. ^{^} Warrington (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
29. ^{^} Kevin Marsh drank gin and snorted cocaine as he watched a Bear Grylls show on Netflix hours before getting behind the wheel (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
30. ^{^} His partner Michelle Atherton died aged 47 in the crash (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
31. ^{^} Liverpool Crown Court (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
32. ^{^} Anfield (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
33. ^{^} Haydock (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)