Mum jailed over daughter's death snubs her inquest

Warning: This article contains distressing information

A mother who was jailed for manslaughter after her disabled daughter starved to death has refused to take part in her inquest.

Debbie Leitch, 24, who had Down's syndrome, was found dead at her home in South Shore, Blackpool, on 29 August 2019.

Elaine Clarke, who was her daughter’s full-time paid carer, was jailed in 2022 for gross negligence manslaughter.

Alan Wilson, senior coroner for Blackpool and Fylde, said Clarke had been invited to take part in an inquest but had said "no".

The inquest at Blackpool Town Hall heard from Dr Alison Armour, a consultant pathologist at the Royal Preston Hospital, that the cause of death was severe emaciation and neglect.

She also had a severe Norwegian scabies mite skin infection.

There was no sign of any heart disease but she was found covered in faeces at the time of her death, the inquest heard.

Ms Leitch weighed just under four stone (25kg) at the time of her death, having previously been over ten stone (63kg), the inquest was told.

Dr Armour said her debilitation worsened because of lack of food, meaning she could no longer function.

She said she could not rule out Ms Leitch having been dead for up to 24 hours before she was found, and said it was very difficult to give a precise time of death.

Paramedic John Wilkinson, from North West Ambulance Service, said he went to the house in response to a report a woman had gone into cardiac arrest.

He said he found Ms Leitch in an "unnatural position" on the floor of the very untidy room, in which he saw maggots.

Ms Leitch's cousin Stacey Muggridge said she had been horrified by her appearance the last time she saw her.

In a written statement, she told the inquest that Ms Leitch could not walk properly, that her pink and green pyjamas looked black with dirt, and that some of her hair had been "hacked off".

Ms Muggridge said she had also noticed Ms Leitch's skin was red and cracked and that she had "webbed hands".

She said Clarke, who was 49 when she was jailed, would "never change the bedding", believing it was a "carer’s job".

She said Ms Leitch ate only Pot Noodles.

Ms Muggrdige said she had contacted Blackpool Council's social services and the GP to say she was concerned about her cousin.

Blackpool Council social workers made visits to the house in 2019 but did not see anything that raised concern, the inquest heard.

Social worker Kimberley McKie made an unannounced visit, but could not get in.

She was eventually able to speak with Elaine Clarke on the phone, and was told her daughter's scabies was better since she had been given a cream to treat it.

She finally met Ms Leitch at a home assessment in early August, a few weeks before her death, but nothing she saw particularly worried her.

Ms McKie said Ms Leitch looked "generally unwell" during her visit and the skin on her face was shiny and red.

She was taken upstairs to Ms Leitch's bedroom and found the curtains drawn but said it was just a "slightly messy room", the inquest heard.

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