Notts teenager who killed his mother is jailed for 16 years

A TEENAGE boy has been locked up for 16 years for murdering his mum.

Daniel Bartlam, 14, of Georgia Drive, Redhill, hit his mother Jacqueline Barton several times on the head with a claw hammer.

He then padded the 47-year-old’s unconscious body with paper and set fire to it using petrol.

Her body – which was so badly burnt it could only be identified by dental records – was discovered in her bedroom at around 1.10am on April 25, 2011.

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The teenager, who attended Christ the King School, in Arnold, denied the killing for around a month.

When he eventually admitted it, he claimed it was manslaughter but he was found guilty of murder on February 9.

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Officers who searched the boy’s room found violent drawings and writings, along with a claw hammer and a container

of cleaning fluid.

Violent video games and films, including The Amityville Horror and Final Destination – with 18 certificates– were also found.

They discovered that websites he had looked up included “Man kills wife and makes it”; “How to get away with murder”; and “People who get away with murder in shows”.

And forensic examinations of his computer also found footage of violent scenes from Trial and Retribution, EastEnders, Hollyoaks, and Coronation Street – the latter including the scene where the character John Stape kills a woman with a hammer.

The boy had also written a story about killing a

woman in this way.

A judge at Nottingham Crown Court sentenced him to a minimum of 16 years in custody today.

For the full story see tomorrow’s Post.