A devastated son has claimed his mum’s attacker has ‘got away with murder’ after she was jailed for just four years.
Jack Aaron revealed how he will forgive Shelia Pickerill for ‘battering’ his mum 18 hours before she was discovered dead.
Pickerill was caged for the attack which left Jack’s mum Nicola Bray, with a fractured eye socket and jawbone.
Police launched a murder bid after 45-year-old Bray was found dead the following day but no murder charge was ever brought against Pickerill, who went onto admit a charge of grievous bodily harm with intent.
49-year-old Pickerill attacked Bray in a house on August 12, 2020 around 5pm before immediately leaving the property to go and buy alcohol.
Pickerill, of Hanley, must serve four years in prison and a further two years on licence, according to Stoke-on-Trent Live.
Now 19-year-old Jack, from Fenton, has shared his pain around his mother’s death and the ‘injustice’ she faced.
He said: “She took my mother away from me, my mum was my world.
“It is like she has taken a big piece away from me, like a big chunk is missing.
“I would have preferred a longer sentence. I feel like she should have got longer.
“I felt angry because she should have been charged with murder because she admitted assaulting my mum. Her words were that she battered my mother. I’m angry because she’s getting away with murder.
“I don’t understand that if she told the police she had battered my mother then why is she only getting done for grievous bodily harm when my mum has died?”
Staffordshire Police discovered Nicola’s body at her home on Scrivener Road, in Cliffe Vale.
It is still possible that an inquest will be held into Nicola’s death. It was delayed until the conclusion of the court proceedings. No cause of death has ever been disclosed.
Jack says his mum ‘always had a smile on her face’.
He added: “She was a lovely, kind, and caring woman. She would do anything for anyone.
“When I used to go round with my friends she would always hug them at the door and she’d even give my friends a kiss on the cheek.
“She was always laughing and bubbly. She would never be sad or look down. She would always have that smile on her face.”
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