Norfolk Police have released the full victim impact statement of the daughter of a Norfolk grandmother after the woman who pushed her down the stairs was sentenced to 17 years in prison for her manslaughter.
Rosalind Gray, 56, was jailed on Thursday at Norwich Crown Court to 13 years in prison with four years on licence after being found guilty of manslaughter of 60-year-old Linda Rainey, who died two days after she was found at the bottom of the stairs. It followed a row between her and the defendant, about a holiday to Morocco.
Adrian Lawrence was also given a 38-month prison sentence for perverting the cause of justice.
In a full statement, Ms Rainey’s daughter Louise Pierce described the pain her family had felt and the many milestones they will now face without her.
“The morning we all received news of our mum being in hospital started off as a normal day, suddenly from 4 different directions and distances we were heading to a hospital to be by our mum’s side. We held on to hope that a miracle would happen, but it didn’t.
“We got to be with mum for a night until her machines were switched off. Seeing her the way we saw her, is something that will stay in our memories forever. Even our final goodbyes now feel snatched from us as we had tried to seek comfort in the fact she had been having a good time, however this was of course not true.
Nothing was about to get easier for us all, the investigation meant we had the gruelling wait to be able to lay mum to rest.
Read: 17-year sentence for woman who pushed grandmother down stairsA just giving page helped us to fund a funeral we would have struggled to afford; through these donations we saw how loved mum was and how much she meant to so many, while this was lovely it was also heart breaking to witness the shock and sadness mum’s death has had on not only family and friends but communities too. Life since losing mum has been very surreal.
No more will we see her smiling, dancing, singing, or eating ’her cheesy puffs’ that she was so fond of. No more would our children, her grandchildren, be able to have a chat about their day and what they’ve been up to at school or nursery.
Milestones will be missed, not only with her grandchildren, including my daughter starting school, but also her own children. Mum won’t be at my sister Rachels forthcoming wedding; every mum should be there to see their daughter get married. Bobbi and her partner Tyler soon to buy their first home; Mum would have been running about helping and celebrating this milestone with them, and Charlie’s 30th Birthday where mum would have been the life and soul of the party showing off her classic dance moves.
It breaks my heart that I will never get to call her to ask her advice on anything, whether it’s to do with my daughter or how to make Yorkshire puddings, something always got wrong without her reminders!
Almost everyday my 4 year old daughter talks about the ’Star in the Sky’ that is her Nana. have to hold back the tears; how can I explain it? It’s the same for her 7 year old grandson and we just hope he’s old enough to remember her; Mum, his Nanny lived with him for some time and he saw her nearly every day. They had such a close bond and he’s struggling to adjust to not seeing his best friend every day. Mum’s older grandchildren who are 10 and 14 are undergoing counselling as this ordeal has impacted them both at home and at school.
Those of us who haven’t had children are sad to know Mum will never meet them, she adored her grandchildren, they adored her.
Mum was an organ donor and we take some small comfort in knowing that both of her kidneys have helped two different women. Both women contacted us expressing gratitude at being given another chance at life, with one making particular reference to now being able to spend more time with her grandchildren and we just know mum would be over the moon with this. To say we are proud of our mum is an understatement.
Christmas and New Year were particularly difficult times for us last year. The New Year brought only dread of the trial we would have to face, and unknowingly at that time we were unaware that we would end up having to face the trauma of going through a trial on two separate occasions.
This has impacted us significantly by have to re-live it all again. My gut wrenched at the thought of having our first Mother’s Day without her and knowing that we will never get the opportunity spend another Mother’s Day with her.
Waiting for and preparing for the trial has taken its toll on all of us both physically and mentally. Trying to cope with all of this whilst holding down full-time jobs, keeping homes and raising children had at times felt impossible. It feels like the trial means that 12 months after losing Mum we still haven’t been able to properly grieve.
As some of us have been witnesses its only been during the trial that we could get some of the answers we have so desperately needed to help in this process.
But similarly hearing during the trial of how our mum spent her last moments will probably haunt us forever more. Listening to messages that she was sent with almost bullying words makes me sick to the stomach. No one should ever be made to feel unsafe.
The 999-call recording we heard, knowing our mum at that time was fighting for life right next to the same people who were supposed to be her friends; friends who didn’t even go with mum in the ambulance or to hospital to hold her hand until we could be there.
Losing mum in these circumstances has torn a hole right through the centre of our worlds. Between us it has caused us to have significant time off work, and suffer with depression and anxiety.
She should still be with us now. We all do our best to talk about the fun times we’ve all had together. Losing her has been so painful. The lies surrounding it only make the pain harder.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here