Man jailed for life after 'brutal' murder of his bed-bound mother with a hammer

A man who killed his bed-bound mother with a hammer in a "brutal and senseless" attack has received a life sentence with a minimum term of 16 years.

Michael Bowen, 35, was convicted at Winchester Crown Court of murdering 65-year-old Janet Bowen at the property they shared in Maple Gardens, Yateley, Hampshire, in the early hours of New Year’s Eve last year.

The court was told that he struck his mother, who had recently had a stroke, more than 10 times to the head and face using the tool.

Passing sentence, Judge Adam Feest KC described the incident as a "ferocious and sustained attack", saying: "It is impossible to imagine the terror that she experienced in the final moments of her life or the emotional distress she was under knowing that it was her own son committing this act of serious violence against her."

Relatives described Bowen, who acted as a carer for his mother, as having been a "caring, loving son" prior to being altered by his "heavy" drug habit.

In mitigation, Tina Adkin KC stated that the defendant had recently resolved to stop using drugs and alcohol after his grandmother died.

She told the court that he had demonstrated "real remorse for his actions".

Medical assessments indicated Bowen suffered from a substance-induced psychotic disorder worsened by alcohol withdrawal, hearing voices telling him to kill his mother, the court heard.

Jurors nevertheless dismissed a defence of diminished responsibility, returning a verdict of guilty for murder.

A victim impact statement from Samantha Bowen, the victim's daughter and sister of the defendant, was read to the court: "My mum was a gentle and kind person, she had a heart of gold.

"She was a much-loved member of our family, always putting others before herself.

"When we were growing up she selflessly sacrificed her own dreams just to raise us and make sure we had everything we needed."

She stated: "She was my biggest cheerleader and my heart is broken."

Ms Bowen added: "The fact that it was my own brother who took her life has fractured our family in a way that feels completely impossible to heal, brutal and senseless."

She explained that her mother was "completely vulnerable and unable to defend herself" after her recent stroke.

She said: "I am forced to grieve the horrific loss of my mother under such cruel circumstances.

"The layer of betrayal and confusion this has brought into my life is an unimaginable weight to carry."

In addition to murder, Bowen received sentences for cannabis possession and criminal damage at a neighbouring address.

Following the trial, Benjamin May, representing the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "Janet Bowen was a vulnerable woman, left seriously unwell by a stroke and entirely reliant on others, including the defendant, for her care.

"Her own son violated that trust in the most brutal way, launching a sustained and fatal attack on her in the place she should have been safest.

"While Bowen accepted he had unlawfully killed his mother, we did not accept that a plea to manslaughter reflected the true gravity of what he had done, and the jury agreed."