Newtown(UK): Parents of an obese teen who died in conditions ‘unfit for an animal’ are facing a court trial for negligence leading to the death of her 16-year-old daughter at their Newtown home in Powys.
The girl, Kaylea Titford, was found dead in a bed full of worms and flies around her body at the time when the country was under Coronavirus imposed lockdown in October, 2020.
The court was told by the prosecutor that Kaylea was neglected to the point she became morbidly obese weighing 146 Kg, living in a filthy room that had milk bottles filled with urine lying around her bed in the last days of her life.
While her mother Sarah Lloyd-Jones, 39, admitted to manslaughter by gross negligence, the father Alun Titford, 45, pleaded not guilty to the crime.
Kaylea suffered hydrocephalus, a build-up of fluid on the brain, and spina bifida, a spinal condition which required her to use wheelchair from an early age, said prosecutor Caroline Rees KC, who opened Titford’s trial.
She told the court that Kaylea was described as ‘funny and chatty’ by people at Newtown High school. But she ended up being confined to her home after the lockdown began in March 2020.
The court heard Kaylea was “fiercely independent” prior to lockdown and participated in high school Physical Education classes while being a wheelchair.
The prosecutor argued that her parents failed to keep her clean and left her alone in her modified room, which caused her weight to skyrocket and her health to suffer.
Despite a number of health issues, Kaylea apparently did not visit a doctor in the nine months prior to her death and did not wash for weeks.
After Kaylea was discovered dead in her bed, Father Alun Titford, 45, was charged with gross negligence manslaughter and causing or permitting a child’s death while her mother entered a guilty plea for the same crimes.
Kaylea was allegedly forced to use “puppy pads” to relieve herself on her urine-stained floor at the time of her death in October 2020 and was “living in conditions not suited for animals,” said prosecutor Caroline Rees KC.
She “lived and died in poverty and degradation,” the prosecutor stated.
In addition to failing to keep Kaylea clean and “medically safe,” her parents also failed in their “duty of care” to ensure that she got exercise and ate a balanced diet.
Kaylea was “morbidly obese” with a BMI of 70 at the time of her death, according to Ms. Rees KC, and weighed 146KG (22.9stone).
Kaylea developed morbid obesity because Alun Titford didn’t make sure her nutritional needs were satisfied, the woman claimed.
According to Ms. Rees, Titford also accused her of not making sure she got adequate exercise, was in a hygienic environment, and had a safe and tidy living space.
She said that six months had passed after Kaylea’s nails had been cut and that “fully grown” maggots had been discovered inside Kaylea’s body near her buttocks and legs.
“These maggots were present in life and death,” Ms. Rees remarked.
According to testimony given to the jury, Kaylea’s chamber included over 100 flies on fly paper, and the chair hoist had signs of fly excrement.
Kaylea, who required assistance with daily duties, had matted hair and hadn’t been bathed in “many weeks.”
The fact that they permitted her to get into such a physical state, according to Ms. Rees, “must be evident that there was a major violation of duty to her.”
On October 10, 2020, Kaylea’s mother Lloyd-Jones discovered her lifeless in bed at her Newtown, Powys, residence.
According to Ms. Rees, a police officer “nearly became sick” when he saw and smelled unwashed faeces in the bathroom, and a paramedic could smell “rotting flesh” when he entered the bedroom when the police arrived.
“Once her body was removed, officers could see the condition of the bed, which was full of maggots and had an overpowering ammonia stench,” Ms. Rees claimed.
According to Ms. Rees, Titford said that Lloyd-Jones was accountable for Kaylea’s death and that he was “shocked” by his daughter’s passing.
The prosecution claims that because he resided there and must have known, as well as the fact that he took no action, he cannot be absolved of responsibility.
Titford, of Newtown, Powys, sat silently the entire time while sporting black coat and pants.
He rejected the charges of manslaughter and causing or permitting a child’s death.
The trial before Mr. Justice Griffiths, which has a four-week trial schedule, is still ongoing.
(With input from agencies)
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