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| Daughter guilty of murdering MS father in Dagenham home | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| A carer who said she suffocated her father with a plastic bag because of his "intolerable" multiple sclerosis has been found guilty of murder. | A carer who said she suffocated her father with a plastic bag because of his "intolerable" multiple sclerosis has been found guilty of murder. |
| Claire Darbyshire, 36, said she killed her father Brian, 67, at their home in Wykeham Green, Dagenham, on 2 September 2015 as part of a failed suicide pact. | Claire Darbyshire, 36, said she killed her father Brian, 67, at their home in Wykeham Green, Dagenham, on 2 September 2015 as part of a failed suicide pact. |
| She was found the next evening wandering around cliff tops in Kent, asking for help. | She was found the next evening wandering around cliff tops in Kent, asking for help. |
| The Old Bailey jury unanimously found her guilty. She had denied murder. | The Old Bailey jury unanimously found her guilty. She had denied murder. |
| Bed-ridden | Bed-ridden |
| Mr Darbyshire, a father-of-two, had developed MS in 1995 and lost his wife Lynn in 2008. | Mr Darbyshire, a father-of-two, had developed MS in 1995 and lost his wife Lynn in 2008. |
| His daughter had become his full-time carer when he became bed-ridden in 2014. | His daughter had become his full-time carer when he became bed-ridden in 2014. |
| Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said Ms Darbyshire had come to an "agreement" with her father that they would kill themselves; because of his condition and because "she would have nothing to live for once her father had gone". | Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said Ms Darbyshire had come to an "agreement" with her father that they would kill themselves; because of his condition and because "she would have nothing to live for once her father had gone". |
| However, jurors heard that Mr Darbyshire had never expressed suicidal thoughts or complained about being in pain to nurses who visited him. | However, jurors heard that Mr Darbyshire had never expressed suicidal thoughts or complained about being in pain to nurses who visited him. |
| Mr Rees said a woman who worked in a jewellery shop where Ms Darbyshire volunteered had also noticed she was "more and more stressed" and complained about having to look after her father. | Mr Rees said a woman who worked in a jewellery shop where Ms Darbyshire volunteered had also noticed she was "more and more stressed" and complained about having to look after her father. |
| After killing him she took a train to Dover. She was found the next day on the White Cliffs by a National Trust worker. | After killing him she took a train to Dover. She was found the next day on the White Cliffs by a National Trust worker. |
| Mr Darbyshire's body was discovered by police on 10 September, eight days after the killing, after a neighbour raised the alarm. | Mr Darbyshire's body was discovered by police on 10 September, eight days after the killing, after a neighbour raised the alarm. |
| Police found him in bed dressed in a suit, with a teddy bear and several notes written by his daughter which praised him as a "wonderful" man and said: "He asked me to help him end it". | Police found him in bed dressed in a suit, with a teddy bear and several notes written by his daughter which praised him as a "wonderful" man and said: "He asked me to help him end it". |
| In a statement to police, Ms Darbyshire said her father had "got to the stage where he couldn't stand the misery of his life and the indignity of it any more". | In a statement to police, Ms Darbyshire said her father had "got to the stage where he couldn't stand the misery of his life and the indignity of it any more". |
| However, Scotland Yard said she never mentioned her father's death or the suicide pact until five days later. | |
| Paul Keleher, her defence lawyer, had argued that her actions amounted to assisting suicide rather than committing an unlawful killing. | Paul Keleher, her defence lawyer, had argued that her actions amounted to assisting suicide rather than committing an unlawful killing. |
| However, the jury rejected the lesser offences of manslaughter or assisting a suicide. | However, the jury rejected the lesser offences of manslaughter or assisting a suicide. |
| Ms Darbyshire was born Christopher, but changed her name to Claire by deed poll in 2008 and has lived as a woman for many years. | |
| The Recorder of London, Nicholas Hilliard QC, said he adjourned sentencing until a later date so he could understand the impact of custody "in the particular circumstances". |