Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
News
Original poster

Anyone been following the Jordan Burling death case *warning, distressing*

263 replies

SealSong · 10/07/2018 20:42

Has anyone been following this baffling and tragic case?
Mother and Grandmother have been convicted of manslaughter today.
Jordan aged 18 died at home, emaciated and with bed sores, having had no medical treatment.

Details of the court case in here - warning contains very distressing details.

I am struggling to understand how this could have happened. How the mother and grandmother could have failed to get medical attention, and also how Jordan just gave up and wasted away, when there were no apparent special needs, mental illness or specific health problems (as far as is known). Although surely he must have had some kind of undiagnosed mental illness or something.

I'm surprised that there hasn't been a thread on Mumsnet about this case, it has been in national news, but not very high priority I suppose.

One of the strangest and saddest cases I have ever heard of.

OP posts:
flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:10

the sentence handed out is a disgrace

that poor boy and baby died because of them and the sentence is a joke

rip

Gingergin · 12/07/2018 17:13

I just don’t understand it at all really, did he just decide to stop eating and they let him and didn’t seek help? Why did he just waste away? The bbc article says they ate in the living room and there was a bin in there so they didn’t know how much he was eating, sounds like he had a possible eating disorder and they just allowed it to get so bad? The poor boy, how could they let him get into such a state.

flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:15

there are some pics in the DM of him before and after

shocking

their were three of them so no exscuse for one of them to take charge and stopped this happening

im really bloody angry about it

Original poster
SealSong · 12/07/2018 17:17

Mum, Grandma and sister sentenced - warning, link shows a shocking photo of Jordan while still alive - here.

Just appalling.

OP posts:
flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:20

he looks about 70yrs old,look at his ribs and how slender his fingers are

words fail me how 3 people can ignore this

sentence imo should be reviewed

bloody heartbreaking

TheFifthKey · 12/07/2018 17:21

The report I read said the grandfather was very controlling and committed suicide - both grandmother and mum have low IQs and I’m sure he left a lasting effect on them both, and probably the whole family, as they seem enmeshed and the mother had little to do with anyone outside the family. They were also tormented by youths on the estate. They’re undoubtedly guilty, and I think it seems they knew the situation was wrong, but I think they were so disassociated/powerless/helpless that they just couldn’t act. They all seem to have been quite vulnerable and not supported when they needed it.

flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:25

stop the excuses its an insult to two humans that died at their hands ffs

mariemalade · 12/07/2018 17:25

I've been following this case too and just came onto Mumsnet to see whether anyone had any insight. One of the reports mentioned that he was interested in World of Warcraft and another said that the house was equipped with computers, screens and mobile phones. I wonder was he spending a lot of time online/gaming? What would possess him not to eat? Particularly as there was no underlying illness.

Their sentencing seems very short, however as another poster pointed out, the family themselves seemed very unwell. It seems as if they had no idea their behaviour was wrong.
Are there no regulations if a teenager drops out of the school system and is home-schooled?

flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:28

the birth mother managed a relationship and the lad was attending school for years so not something that started at birth,what changed we dont know but please dont make those three the victims

Meeep · 12/07/2018 17:28

I just felt very sorry for them all. They clearly slipped through the net and unfortunately didn't get social services / other support they obviously needed.
They didn't seem to actually want to cause him harm, they seemed utterly incapable of knowing how to cope with his anorexia (assumed?).

TheFifthKey · 12/07/2018 17:28

So we just lock them up and say job done? Clearly there’s a catastrophic failure here and saying “throw away the key” won’t solve that. This boy vanished from school at the age of 12 and apparently that was never followed up on - that’s a failure. Yes, they colluded in it, but because they wanted him to die? It doesn’t seem like that. Where was the care for this child who was left with hugely inadequate carers? How could this happen? Asking those questions isn’t making excuses.

Cheeseislife · 12/07/2018 17:29

This has been a bit of a rabbit hole for me, I've spent hours reading up on this case, it had me horrified. Read the court transcripts and everything. If you Google his name he seems to have a twitter and YouTube account both of which he just stopped using in 2015 I think. After hours of debating with myself I still can't fathom how he ended up like this, so very sad

Original poster
SealSong · 12/07/2018 17:30

"stop the excuses its an insult to two humans that died at their hands ffs"

(possible) explanations are not excuses. They are not excused their crime by seeking to understand how it could happen. If we don't try to understand how and why things happen then we can't prevent them in the future.

OP posts:
Original poster
SealSong · 12/07/2018 17:31

Cheeseislife, can you link to the court transcripts?

OP posts:
Original poster
SealSong · 12/07/2018 17:32

Meep we can't assume that he had anorexia. There is no evidence to suggest that.

OP posts:
greendale17 · 12/07/2018 17:34

Why didn’t the father raise the alarm? Especially as he saw Jordan regularly? I believe the father is just as responsible

user1457017537 · 12/07/2018 17:42

flopsyrabbit1 I was going to say the same astonishing excuses for this tragic loss of life. I do think anyone capable of this is evil

ahola · 12/07/2018 17:43

I had assumed that he had ASD. (His photograph published, something about his appearance is very reminiscent of other children I know with ASD).
I wondered if his diet was v restricted because of that, and it had developed into an ED.
But the nappies? When I read that, I then assumed profound autism with LDs too. How could he have dropped out of school in that case? Children with a statement or EHCP are entitled to services up to 25.
Very sad, poor boy.

user1457017537 · 12/07/2018 17:44

Jordan slipped through the net they probably said he was being home schooled. The recent case in America springs to mind

Original poster
SealSong · 12/07/2018 17:45

Ahola, I think I have read that he was not known to have any special needs, when in school. I haven't seen anywhere that he had any LD or autism.

OP posts:
petrolpump28 · 12/07/2018 17:46

repeating myself but why do so called " relatives" crawl out of the wood work and claim to shocked blah blah.
Baby P
Victoria Climbie
that poor little Polish boy?

I'd soon know if one of my family was being starved to death.

petrolpump28 · 12/07/2018 17:47

I have a bad gut feeling about a kid I know who is being home schooled

flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:54

user1457017537 i know,this has made me so angry and i dont often get like this

i think some of it is because there were three generations all compliant in this,i really cant make sense and yes i think the sentence is very low

petrolpump28 maybe you should act on it,you could save a child and get some help if needed,what makes you think this?

flopsyrabbit1 · 12/07/2018 17:57

i know its a small number where all is not what it seems with HS but i dont understand why they are not checked

at the very least it would be good to know that these home schooled children are getting a good education and progressing as they should

mariemalade · 12/07/2018 17:59

Just looked at his Twitter account @Xtroglide207. He's only followed by 4 people, one of which is a Dawn who lives in Leeds. I presume that's his Mum.
V odd accounts.