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Man killed disabled wife
A HUSBAND smothered his disabled wife to death after she failed in an attempt to take a fatal overdose, a court heard.
George Hugh Webb, aged 73, killed 75-year-old Beryl Webb as she lay on a bed in their ground-floor flat on Luke Lane, Wadsley, Sheffield.
Beryl battled a series of painful illnesses in the years before her death and talked daily about taking her own life - even buying a book detailing methods of committing suicide, jurors at Sheffield Crown Court heard.
Webb is accused of smothering his wife with a plastic bag and a towel before "pressing down" with his hands over her face.
Over a year before the killing on May 14, Beryl penned a letter setting out her wish to die at the Dignitas clinic in Switzerland - but also wrote in her diary in 2007: "Hugh dreadful. Wants me dead. Hates me because of my mobility problems."
Webb told police he "reluctantly" agreed to help her commit suicide.
Neil Flewitt QC, prosecuting, said Beryl attempted to kill herself by taking the anti-anxiety drug lorazepam, along with brandy and fizzy orange pop.
"Eventually she fell into a deep sleep, but after some time began to sleep more lightly," he said.
"When she returned again into a deep sleep, he decided to act in accordance with their agreement. He placed a plastic bag over her face, covered it with a towel and pressed down. She raised her arms to prevent what was happening. He got on top of her so he could apply more pressure."
Mr Flewitt said Webb stopped after half an hour. He called his half-sister Diane Swanson the next morning and told her Beryl was dead, he added.
"He said, 'I promised her and I made sure'," Mr Flewitt told the court.
Beryl was found dressed in a nightgown, her body partially covered by a quilt. The cause of death was recorded as upper airway obstruction.
Following his arrest, Webb told police he didn't want Beryl to die.
"He described his wife as a very strong-willed woman who was determined to die," Mr Flewitt said.
"He was suggesting that his wife was the dominant character in their relationship, and that she pressured him against his will and better judgement to bring her life to an end."
The court heard Beryl had survived breast cancer, suffered a possible mini-stroke in February, and had "medically unexplained symptoms" put down to fibromyalgia, as well as bad arthritis.
She also had histrionic personality disorder, which meant she "tended to over-dramatise what she felt, saw, heard or experienced," Mr Flewitt said.
He also told the court Webb may have had a "controlling influence" over his wife, and would become angry with her.
Webb accepts he killed Beryl, but denies murder.
The trial continues.
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Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
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