She told her 59-year-old mother that her 80-year-old husband, Michael Baines, s*exually abu*sed her and her brother when they were kids. Smith ki*lled her husband while he was sleeping by pouring hot sugar water over him.
In July 2020, 59-year-old Corinna Smith attacked 81-year-old Michael Baines, leaving him with 36% burns on his body and telling a neighbor, “I think I kil*led him.”
It was said that Smith was upset and angry the day before the attack because she believed a story about her spouse to be true.
The evidence in court showed that Smith, whose real name was Corinna Baines, took care of her husband.
The prosecution said that adding sugar to water made it “thicker, more viscous, and stickier so that it would stick to the skin and do more damage, which it did.”
Smith was given a life sentence with a minimum of 12 years in prison at Chester Crown Court on Friday. He had been found guilty after a trial.
Corinna Smith, who was also known as Corinna Baines, was given a life sentence with a minimum of 12 years in prison at the Chester Crown Court on July 9.
Smith, who lived on Highfield Road in Neston, was found guilty in a previous trial.
She mixed three bags of sugar with boiling water, the jury said, which burned Michael Baines 36% of his body.
In the early hours of July 14, 2020, the 80-year-old was taken to Whiston Hospital in very bad shape. He got medical care for his injuries, but even though doctors did everything they could, he died a month later on August 18th.
Several sources say that Smith’s daughter told her on July 13 that her husband had been accused of se*xually assaulting children for “many years.”
Craig Baines, the only child of Corinna Smith and Michael Baines, was accused of se*xual assault on a child. He tragically kil*led himself at the age of 25 in 2007.
The judge, the Honorable Mrs Justice Amanda Yip DBE, said this about the man’s death: “He had been troubled before he died and had been detained for a major assault.”
“You and your family couldn’t figure out what happened in Craig’s life.” He told you that the man he beat up was a child molester and that he had se*x with him.
“Craig was upset the day before he died and told his mother, ‘He’s a child molester.'”
“You thought he was talking to the person he attacked.” Craig seemed happier the next day, but you didn’t follow up on what he said.
That made you feel bad about what you did. You felt responsible for Craig’s death even though there was no reason to.
“The trial for your husband could not and did not check the truth of the accusations made against him.” The prosecution said, “They were right to believe what they said.”Without a doubt, the revelations made you very upset.
It would have taken Smith about 13 minutes to mix the three bags of sugar with about two full kettles of boiling water, the court heard.
After quickly telling a neighbor what she had done, Smith poured boiling sugar water on her 38-year-old husband.
Lawyer for the defense Mary Loram says that she was “howling” with pain by the time the police arrived.
“I understand that your past helps explain why you did what you did, but I’m sure you know that it’s not an excuse,” Justice Yip said.
It doesn’t matter what you thought your spouse did; what you did is wrong. You k*illed Mr. Baines, which caused his children and other loved ones a lot of pain and shock. His daughters’ and your son’s well-thought-out and polite comments make this clear.
“The arrest and ki*lling of Mr. Baines took away any chance of testing the claims.” It is true that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but this took away his right to a fair trial.
There is no doubt that this has caused Mr. Baines’ children unbearable pain. The accusations have not been proven and are still open. This is a terrible situation for the whole family. They are not guilty at all and deserve our deepest sympathy.
Mark Rhind, the prosecutor, said that the court had heard a number of personal statements from victims’ families that described the pain they had been through over the past year.
Sending sentences, Justice Yip said, “I sentence you based on the fact that your goal was to cause serious harm rather than mur*der.” This intention was also formed during a time of distress.
This plan wasn’t well thought out. The things you used were things you already had. I understand that your first thought was to call the police and that your desire to hurt your husband came about later, when you were at home thinking about what you had been told.
“You will spend the rest of your life in prison for ki*lling Michael Baines,” the judge said. The minimum sentence is 12 years, but that number is lowered by 166 days for time spent in jail and 96 days for time served on a qualifying curfew.
“This is the bare minimum of time you will have to serve. There is no guarantee that you will be freed at the end of your sentence or at any time afterward.”
You will be told by the Parole Board if you are eligible for parole or not.
“You should also know that if and when you get out of jail, you will have a license that lasts your whole life. If you commit another crime, you could be arrested and sent back to jail.”
