A 67-year-old woman has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for killing her stepdaughter by forcing her into a scalding hot bath. Janice Nix was convicted of the manslaughter of five-year-old Andrea Bernard, which occurred in Thornton Heath, south London, in 1978. The death was initially treated as an accident until Andrea's brother, Desmond Bernard, approached police in 2022 with a new account of the events.
Sentencing at Isleworth Crown Court
Nix, a retired probation officer, received her sentence at Isleworth Crown Court on Friday. She was also found guilty of cruelty against Desmond Bernard between October 1975 and June 1978, when he was between seven and nine years old. During sentencing, Mr Justice Nicholas Lavender stated, 'I'm sure that you ran the bath, you knew how hot it was, you told Andrea to get in the bath, she said it was too hot, but you either put her in the bath or made her get into it.' He added, 'And you heard her screams. At the very least the risk ought to have been obvious to you.'
Victim Impact Statements
In a victim impact statement read in court, Desmond Bernard described the abuse he and his sister endured, including beatings with a belt and being forced to eat cat food. He said, 'The last memories I have of my sister's life are piercing screams and lying about her death to survive.' Addressing Nix directly, he stated, 'You took away her future and changed mine forever. Your contrived grief at Andrea's funeral, the lies, the tears. You fooled my family because they couldn't imagine the unimaginable.'
Prosecutor Kerry Broome read a statement from Angela Bernard, the mother of Andrea and Desmond, who described Andrea as 'so sweet and loving.' The statement read, 'When she died, it completely destroyed me. She deserved to have a life, not be lying around in a cemetery. I think about her every single day.'
The Incident
On June 6, 1978, Nix, then known as Janice Thomas and in her late teens, was 'furious' after Andrea ignored instructions not to leave the house. She shouted at Andrea in an 'extremely loud' voice before beating her. Desmond Bernard testified that he heard the bath running and heard Nix shouting, 'Get in the bath,' while Andrea protested it was too hot. He then heard screaming and splashing, followed by Nix calling Andrea to 'wake up.' When he entered the bathroom, he saw Nix cradling Andrea, who was 'limp' and wrapped in a towel. He noted, 'I could see skin falling off her.' Nix asked him to say it was an accident and that they were in the garden when it happened.
Medical Evidence
Andrea died nearly six weeks after arriving at hospital with burns to 50% of her body. A burns expert testified that a child exposed to water hot enough to cause such injuries would instinctively try to stand up, not remain seated. Prosecutors argued this meant Nix forcibly held parts of Andrea's body underwater.
Nix's Changing Accounts
During the 1978 inquest, Nix initially claimed Andrea took a bath on her own and later complained of itchy legs before fainting. However, at trial, she admitted to giving a false account to the coroner because she was 'in a panic' over failing to supervise Andrea. In a 2022 police interview, Nix provided a version of events that 'significantly' differed from her original statement, according to the Metropolitan Police. She also claimed the coroner found Andrea's death was due to an overheated bath caused by a faulty boiler, a detail not mentioned in the report.
Background
Before the police investigation, Nix published a book titled 'Breaking Out,' co-written with Elizabeth Sheppard, detailing her transformation from a major drug dealer known as 'Mama J' to an award-winning probation officer. She worked for the Probation Service between 2014 and 2019 and won the Probation Service's diversity and engagement award in 2015. Nix had previously served two 'substantial' prison terms for drug offenses. She will serve two-thirds of her 12-year sentence before becoming eligible for release on license.
