Stephen Todd left Melissa Eastick with around 123 bruises, cuts, fractures and cigarette burns, which were caused during repeated assaults at his home, prosecutors claim
A woman died with over 100 injuries including fractures and cigarette burns inflicted by her violent ex-partner over a series of days, a murder trial has heard.
Stephen Todd left 36-year-old Melissa Eastick with around 123 bruises, cuts, fractures and cigarette burns, which were caused during repeated assaults at his home, prosecutors claim. Newcastle Crown Court heard Melissa had also suffered a brain injury which would have left her unconscious for “some days” before her death.
Todd, 41, denies murder and is being tried by a jury. Prosecutor Peter Glenser KC told the court Todd had called 999 just after 7am on October 17 last year and reported he was unable to wake Melissa, who did not appear to be breathing. The emergency call handler advised Todd to get Melissa onto the floor and gave him instructions on how to carry out CPR, which he did.
When paramedics arrived at his then home at Stockton Terrace, Sunderland, Todd led them to a dark living room and claimed: “She was alright yesterday.” But Mr Glenser told jurors: “The Crown, the prosecution, say that, like a great deal of what he was to say over the days that followed, was a lie.
“There was no way that Melissa Eastick was ‘alright yesterday’, the day before. It very quickly became apparent that there was very extensive bruising and swelling to her body and face and that she was very cold to the touch.
“When they examined her it was obvious she was dead and her life was formally pronounced extinct at 7.14am. It appears that her death was neither quick nor easy. She had sustained more than 100 injuries, probably nearer 123 in the time leading up to her death. When she died she was 36 years old. She was a frail and vulnerable individual.”
The court heard Melissa was in Todd’s company on October 2 and they were caught on CCTV together in Asda, where they bought food before they returned to his two-bedroom flat .Mr Glenser told jurors: “There are no recorded sightings of Melissa Eastick alive after this date, either in person or on CCTV.”
Jurors heard Melissa received a sales call on her mobile from Vodaphone on October 6, which was recorded by the company and showed that she did have a conversation with the employee. Mr Glenser said that call was the “last proof of life for Melissa Eastick”.
The court heard when the emergency services arrived at the flat on October 17, Melissa had facial bruising, fractured ribs, vertebrae, nose and jaw, cigarette burns to her torso and a brain injury which would have rendered her unconscious for some days before her death. Mr Glenser said some of the injuries would have been inflicted between four and seven days before her death whereas others were about 72 hours before
.Mr Glenser said: “The prosecution say Miss Eastick was repeatedly assaulted over a period of some days and that these assaults took place in the defendant’s flat. He, we say, is responsible for her death and he meant either to kill her or cause her really serious harm and she died as a result of that harm.”
Mr Glenser said specialist evidence indicates Melissa’s bone fractures were inflicted at different times, “separated by days”. The court heard Todd and Melissa had been partners “on and off” since around 2018 and both had struggles with alcohol.
Mr Glenser said their relationship had been “turbulent to say the least” and Melissa had spent time living in a homeless shelter but it appeared she was staying with Todd from around last August.
Todd, 41, of Buttermere Street, Sunderland, denies murder. He told police Melissa had arrived at his home a few days before her death and was already “black and blue” but denied responsibility for any of her injuries.
The trial continues.
