A 16-year-old teen pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Monday and admitted she killed a 7-year-old girl by suffocating her and slashing her with a knife.
BBC News reports that the suspect, whose name is disclosed because of her age, is accused of killing Katie Rough. Katie and the suspect were both in a field in York, England, on January 9, when the suspect placed a gloved hand over the little girl’s mouth until she suffocated her. The suspect then started slashing Katie’s neck and torso before feeling the field.
An autopsy report indicated that Katie died from asphyxiation. The stab wounds occurred after the child had already died. The suspect left a 2.4 inch slash across the the victim’s neck and a 7.9 inch slash across her torso.
A witness, Mrs. Mills, noticed a teen playing with Katie on the day of the murder, but the pair appeared to be happy and not under any distress. Shortly after, the husband of the witness, Mr. Mills, saw the teen standing close to a nearby road, covered in mud. He took her into his home, thinking that the teen had been attacked. The suspect revealed that Katie was in the field still, prompting Mr. Mills to search.
“As Mrs. Mills took the girl into her house for safety, Mr. Mills ran to the Square. He saw Katie around 15 to 20 yards beyond the entrance to the field,” prosecuting attorney, Mr. Reads said. “She was lying on her back, her hands to the side and above her back. Her face was covered in blood. He attempted to find a pulse or signs of breathing but with no success. “Katie was lifeless. She didn’t respond to him talking. He covered her with his coat and ran back to the house and got his wife to call an ambulance.”
Some candles burn all too briefly, but while they do they bathe our world in beautiful light. <3 KATIE <3
Posted by RIP Katie Rough on Tuesday, January 17, 2017
The suspect had apparently been taking the strong mental health medication, fluoxetine, and according to doctors, suffered from a psychosis episode just a month prior to the murder. Around 48 hours prior to killing Katie, the teen took to Instagram and posted the caption, “Mentally, seriously, not okay.” Prosecutors said the teen also thought that people were not humans, but instead, robots.
The defendant covered her mouth with her hand and looked down after she entered a guilty plea manslaughter. He lawyer confirmed that she was not admitting to murder but was indeed pleading guilty to manslaughter.
<3 <3 <3 Forever Young <3 <3 <3
Posted by RIP Katie Rough on Thursday, January 12, 2017
“I can confirm she has indicated not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. We are going to accept the plea of manslaughter by means of diminished responsibility.”
The guilty plea came on the first day of the teen’s murder trial. Sentencing has not yet been set.
[Feature Photo: Facebook]
