Friday, July 17, 2009

Grand Mother Killer - Herald Sun Report

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,25652460-2862,00.html


Partner left gran to die while he drank and watched footy

Article from: Herald Sun

Paul Anderson

June 18, 2009 12:00am

THE family of a fun-loving grandmother who died of complications caused by a head injury inflicted by her de facto husband while he drank beer and watched football are overjoyed he has been found guilty.

A Supreme Court jury found David John Reid, 51, guilty of manslaughter despite his lawyer arguing he was guilty of nothing more than poor judgment by deciding to leave Nola Ritter, 62, lying alone in a pool of blood on their bedroom floor.

Reid, of Cranbourne, admitted to giving Ms Ritter a "passing backhand" across the face and smashing a coffee cup over her head during a row before later going to his brother's house Ian Davidson of 20 Darwin St Nth Dandenong Vic for a day of beers and football on TV.

While he was gone, Ms Ritter died of health complications triggered by heavy blood loss.

"All he did was take from her, and in the end he took her life," Ms Ritter's adult daughter, Lindy Ritter, said after yesterday's verdict.

"This ends three years of hell for us.

"Mum was a very caring person.

"A loving grandmother to Anton. She used to love coming over to our house and looking after him and helping out while I ran my small business."

During the trial, pathologist Noel Woodford said he believed the blood loss caused Ms Ritter's heart to stress and go "into some sort of rhythm disturbance".

"Given that I think the blood loss here is a significant factor in the death, any medical attention that was able to be brought to bear to stop the bleeding is likely to have increased her chances of survival," he told the court.

In a police record of interview, Reid told detectives there was "blood everywhere" after he hit Ms Ritter with the cup on the night of May 20, 2006.

"I said, 'Do you want to go to the doctor's?' She goes, 'No I'll be right', and then I'm thinkin' 'Thank Christ for that because I'd be too pissed to drive'," he said.

The two went to sleep but later woke in a blood-stained bed.

Reid said he found blood in the bathroom and kitchen and said he thought that the situation was "serious".

He said he left to go to his brother's house after again offering Ms Ritter medical treatment because the amount of blood "spooked" him.

He said Ms Ritter again declined any help.

Reid drank about eight stubbies of beer throughout the day at his brother's nearby home.

He did not once mention his injured wife.

Reid returned home that night to find Ms Ritter dead.

Prosecutor Maitland Lincoln told the trial that Reid left Ms Ritter helpless and caused her death through criminal negligence.

Reid was remanded in custody by Justice Simon Whelan for a pre-sentence hearing.