A Liverpool man who strangled his 17-year-old girlfriend after being taunted about his sexual prowess to death was today jailed for life – for the second time.
Callum Wilcocks throttled Kelsey, 17, the mum of their three-year-old daughter, in a row over cheating at a flat in Foundry Lane, Widnes, on April 29, 2011.
The 23-year-old killed her moments after she came round from being strangled a first time.
Wilcocks was today convicted over her murder at a re-trial after initially being convicted in 2013.
That conviction was quashed by appeal judges after Wilcocks claimed a severe mental disorder meant that he was not in control of his actions.
But a jury at Liverpool Crown Court rejected that defence.
Wilcocks, of Hale Drive in Speke, was jailed for life and must serve 16 years before he is eligible for parole.
Judge Mr Justice Holroyde told him: “The jury rejected your attempts to minimise responsibility for this terrible crime. You ended a very young life in very cruel manner.
“The first strangling shows you knew exactly what you were doing.
“The grim reality is that it cannot have been quick, and she could not have met her death passively.
“You choked the life out of her. Every murder ends one life, but ruins many more, and so it has in this case.
“Kelsey Shaw, aged only 17, lost her young life, her mother has been left to live with that loss.”
Kelsey Shaw from Speke
Wilcocks had denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility but admitting manslaughter.
He claimed he snapped after being taunted by Kelsey over her relationship with another man and being told he was not the father of their child.
He choked his on-off girlfriend Kelsey in an arm lock before continuing to throttle her with his hands when she collapsed.
In his police interview, Wilcocks, who was then 19, admitted: “I had this mad feeling in my head, she just needed to die, and get out of my life.”
Kelsey’s mum, Pat, had to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off Kelsey’s life-support machine following the attack.
Mr Justice Holroyde said Wilcocks displayed “no remorse” during the trial.
Callum Wilcocks
He said: “In my judgement this was quite plainly loss of temper, not loss of control.
“As for sexual infidelity, it carries no weight whatsoever when it is put forward by someone who was at least as unfaithful and showed his willingness to engage with other young women as little as a few hours before the killing.”
Wilcocks was handed life with a minimum of 16 years at the first trial in Chester in 2013.
Whether Wilcocks will actually be released after the minimum term depends on the decision of a parole board, who must decide whether he is safe to live among the public.
As he was led to the cells, a member of Kelsey’s family yelled: “I hope you rot”
Wilcocks shouted abuse back as he was taken away in cuffs.
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Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/