A five-year-old girl cried out 'this is too hot, mummy' before being forced into a tub of scalding water that ultimately killed her, a court has heard.
Janice Nix, 67, is charged with the manslaughter of her stepdaughter Andrea Bernard by punishing her with a hot bath in Thornton Heath, south London, in 1978. The little girl's death was initially treated as an accident until her older brother, Desmond Bernard, approached police in 2022, Isleworth Crown Court was told.
Giving evidence on Thursday, Mr Bernard, now 56, said Nix regularly beat the children, even for failing to fold their clothes 'to her standards'. Mr Bernard recounted to the court the sequence of events after the bath was run.
'I could hear Janice shouting 'get in the bath' and I could hear Andrea saying 'the bath is too hot mummy'. I could hear Janice shouting 'get in the bath, get in the bath' and then I heard screaming and splashing.'
'Then I heard the screaming stopped and I could hear Janice calling Andrea to 'wake up, wake up'.'
This remains a developing story. Further updates will follow as more information becomes available.
