AFTER several hours of deliberation on its verdict in the case of a Grays woman charged with killing her mother a jury will return to Basildon Crown Court on Monday in an attempt to reach a decision.

After five days of hearing evidence in the case of Cheryl Banks, 60, of Lenmore Avenue, who has admitted killing her mother but denies murder claiming the act was manslaughter by diminished responsibility, the jury retired to pass judgement today (Friday, 25 February).

Before they retired, defending counsel for Mrs Banks, Ms Tana Adkin told the jury they had to put aside preconceptions and their own experiences and make a decision based on the evidence they had heard.

Looking back over that evidence Ms Adkin referred to psychiatrist Dr Ramon Deo, saying: "Dr Deo is suggesting that she was feeling 'low and ' over her mother's case so decided to smother her.

"Mrs Banks not once said 'I smothered my mother because I couldn't cope with her dementia', nor did her mother say she couldn't cope.

"She has been frank and honest. She would have said 'I smothered by mother becasue I couldn't cope'. That is not what happened.

"Mrs Banks didn't see her mother as a burden. She did not see her mother as 'better off dead'. That is not what this case is about.

"Mrs Banks has been concerned for and managed her mother's care throughout. She was devoted to her mother. She ensured the best care she could for her mother and there is no evidence that she couldn't manage that. She was managing admirably.

"Just a few months earlier she resuscitated her mother using CPR. She had that much care and love and affection that she wanted to save her mother. That happened in October.

"Her depression was hidden. This had nothing to do with Winifred's dementia and Mrs Banks' inability to manage it. It was developing depression that led to an irrational worry that she was going to prison for an offence she had not committed.

"Her depression had not been noticed because of the unusual, atypical features that stoical Mrs Banks had. Mrs Banks did not get the reality checks that might have made a difference because of the impact of covid and isolation and the fact that she was no longer at work where there was the opportunity to see that something had changed.

"Mrs Groves was sadly in the firing line of Mrs Banks' illness."

Ms Adkin said: "There are three reasons why Cheryl Banks is not guilty of murder saying the first was that: "She was a caring and loving daughter and, while they were together there was not reson to hurt her in any way. She said not one bad word about her mother."

She said the second was that consultant psychiatrist Dr Alan Reid , who testified Mrs Banks was severely depressed at the time of the killing, spent reached his opinion on Mrs Banks' state of mental health on a thorough analysis of all the evidence and spent a day with her in person to come to his conclusion. He concluded that when she killed her mother she was suffering an abnormality of mental function that he believed was from a recognised medical condition, which he said was severe depression.

The third was that when she was tested for her fitness to attend trial in October, Mrs Banks tested as severly depressed when examined, even though she showed no biological markers for depression. As part of his diagnosis of Mrs Banks at the time of the killing, Dr Deo had put significant weight on the fact Mrs Banks did not show biological markers.

Ms Adkin contrasted the two situations and suggested it was entirely plausible that Mrs Banks has been severly depressed at the time of the killing.

Judge Samantha Leigh summed up and said: "It is very sad. Getting old, ill, is a fact of life

There is no issue that Mrs Banks was a loving lady towards her mum, attending to her every need - almost roles reversed when a baby is born. "The defence points to the obesssion she had about her finances and the threat of going to prison. "Dr Deo for the Crown says 'yes she was suffering from stress' but putting everything aside she was not suffering from a recognised medical disorder." Acknowledging Dr Allen for the defence offered a different view, Judge Leigh said: "We have a clear difference between two doctors who are referring to clear clincial depression." She drew a comparison with someone saying things like 'I am depressed, I would kill for a drink' which was obviously not what they meant literally and the reality of the situation faced by the jurors' interpretation of what they had heard. "It is not unusual for doctors and experts to have different opinions," she said. "That is what you are going to have to decide." Previous reports Court hears how daughter killed her mother. Harrowing moments relived in court on audio and video. Experts points to reasons behind daughter's state of mind as she killed mum. Opinions vary as to mental health of woman who killed her mother. Trial goes to fifth day.