Stepmother Jailed for 12 Years for 1978 Killing of 5-Year-Old Stepdaughter

A woman has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the 1978 manslaughter of her five-year-old stepdaughter, Andrea Bernard, whom she scalded in a hot bath.

Janice Nix, 67, was found guilty of punishing Andrea by forcing her into dangerously hot water at their home in Thornton Heath, south London, nearly 50 years ago. Andrea suffered extensive burns to half her body and died in hospital five weeks later, on July 13, 1978. The death was initially treated as an accident.

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I'm sure that you ran the bath, you knew how hot it was... You heard her screams.

However, the case was reopened in 2022 when Andrea's older brother, Desmond Bernard, bravely came forward to the police. During the trial at Isleworth Crown Court, Justice Lavender stated, "I'm sure that you ran the bath, you knew how hot it was... You heard her screams." The judge added, "At the very least the risk ought to have been obvious to you."

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At the very least the risk ought to have been obvious to you.

Nix was also convicted of cruelty towards Desmond Bernard, who was between seven and nine years old during the period of abuse. Now 56, Desmond Bernard read a victim impact statement in court, directly addressing Nix. "Your actions robbed me of my sister, and my sister of her life," he stated. He recounted hearing Andrea's screams and Nix's commands to get into the bath, and described how Nix pressured him to lie about the circumstances of Andrea's death.

"The last memories I have of my sister's life are piercing screams and lying about her death to survive," Bernard told the court. "Your contrived grief at Andrea's funeral, the lies, the tears. You fooled my family because they couldn't imagine the unimaginable."

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Your actions robbed me of my sister, and my sister of her life.

Nix will serve two-thirds of her 12-year sentence before becoming eligible for release on license. The jury heard that Nix was angry with Andrea on the day of the incident for not helping with cleaning. Prosecutors suggested Nix forcibly held Andrea underwater, as a burns expert testified that a child exposed to such hot water would instinctively try to escape.

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The last memories I have of my sister's life are piercing screams and lying about her death to survive.