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| Isle of Wight woman Hazel Kimber died 'moulded' to chair | Isle of Wight woman Hazel Kimber died 'moulded' to chair |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| A man left his 83-year-old mother "moulded" to an armchair for two years before she died at their shared home, a court has heard. | A man left his 83-year-old mother "moulded" to an armchair for two years before she died at their shared home, a court has heard. |
| Hazel Kimber was found dead at a house in Seaview, Isle of Wight, in 2015. | Hazel Kimber was found dead at a house in Seaview, Isle of Wight, in 2015. |
| Anthony Kimber, denies manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult at Winchester Crown Court. | Anthony Kimber, denies manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult at Winchester Crown Court. |
| Prosecutors told the 61-year-old's trial that he failed to obtain medical help for his mother. | Prosecutors told the 61-year-old's trial that he failed to obtain medical help for his mother. |
| Jurors heard paramedics found the "severely malnourished" pensioner's body in the house in Ryde Road after Mr Kimber, her full-time carer, dialled the NHS 111 non-emergency number. | |
| Sally Howes QC, prosecuting, said Mrs Kimber had not been in contact with health workers for five years before she died on 31 August. | Sally Howes QC, prosecuting, said Mrs Kimber had not been in contact with health workers for five years before she died on 31 August. |
| "The chair appeared to have moulded to her shape and was rotting away under her," she said. | "The chair appeared to have moulded to her shape and was rotting away under her," she said. |
| "Her spine was rigid and concave by the position in which she had been sitting for so long." | "Her spine was rigid and concave by the position in which she had been sitting for so long." |
| 'Smell of urine' | 'Smell of urine' |
| Mr Kimber told police his mother had been in the chair for two years, the court heard. | Mr Kimber told police his mother had been in the chair for two years, the court heard. |
| Parts of the house were in "utter squalor", with a "strong smell of human urine, excrement, mould and general decay", Ms Howes told the jury. | Parts of the house were in "utter squalor", with a "strong smell of human urine, excrement, mould and general decay", Ms Howes told the jury. |
| She added: "Anthony Kimber had known his mother was unwell for a noticeable time yet failed to obtain any medical assistance or advice." | She added: "Anthony Kimber had known his mother was unwell for a noticeable time yet failed to obtain any medical assistance or advice." |
| She said the defendant told police he was carrying out his mother's wishes not to contact a doctor. | She said the defendant told police he was carrying out his mother's wishes not to contact a doctor. |
| "If Mrs Kimber had had to go into a home, Lexden [their shared home] would undoubtedly have had to be sold to fund this," she said. | "If Mrs Kimber had had to go into a home, Lexden [their shared home] would undoubtedly have had to be sold to fund this," she said. |
| The prosecutor said the defendant's "lack of action" had caused his mother's death, which was from a combination of the effects of malnutrition and blood clots in her lungs. | The prosecutor said the defendant's "lack of action" had caused his mother's death, which was from a combination of the effects of malnutrition and blood clots in her lungs. |
| 'Reclusive life' | 'Reclusive life' |
| William Mousley QC, defending, said Mr Kimber's mother was "frightened" of doctors and did not want to leave her home of 75 years. | William Mousley QC, defending, said Mr Kimber's mother was "frightened" of doctors and did not want to leave her home of 75 years. |
| "At the forefront of Anthony Kimber's mind was his duty to respect the wishes of his mother," the barrister said. | "At the forefront of Anthony Kimber's mind was his duty to respect the wishes of his mother," the barrister said. |
| Mr Mousley added the pair had chosen a "reclusive" life that might seem "eccentric... even disturbing to some". | Mr Mousley added the pair had chosen a "reclusive" life that might seem "eccentric... even disturbing to some". |
| "Quite simply their existence was really not much more than that, and not what many people would describe as a life," he said. | "Quite simply their existence was really not much more than that, and not what many people would describe as a life," he said. |
| In a statement read out in court the paramedic who found Mrs Kimber's body said the house was "like the Addams family, spooky". | |
| She said Mrs Kimber's chair had "completely disintegrated" and the hallway was "thick with dust and cobwebs to the point that it was black and soot-like". | |
| The trial continues. | The trial continues. |