Mother-of-five, 35, is found GUILTY of child cruelty after pouring liquid MORPHINE into beer drunk by her son, 15, during Class A drugs binge that led to his death
- Tyler Peck died in his sleep after taking a cocktail of drugs at his Devon home
- His mother Holly Strawbridge faced trial of child cruelty and drugs charges
- Prosecution said she often gave him drugs and drink ‘to help him cope with life’
- Jury found Strawbridge guilty of child cruelty at Plymouth Crown Court Friday
Holly Strawbridge found guilty of for child cruelty and drugs charges after her son Tyler Peck died of an overdose at her Devon home
The mother of a 15-year-old boy who died of a drugs overdose has been found guilty of child cruelty after pouring liquid morphine into her son’s beer before his death.
Holly Strawbridge, 35, shared powerful painkillers with Tyler Peck and a friend in the kitchen of her family home in Salcombe, Devon during a Class A drugs binge, a jury decided.
Strawbridge gave the teenagers spirits and they sniffed aerosols together, Plymouth Crown Court heard.
Tyler, who had a history of drink and drug abuse, died in his sleep.
His cause of death was recorded as an overdose of Oramorph and Gabapentin, but he also had Valium and codeine in his system – all of which had been prescribed to Strawbridge.
Strawbridge’s husband Gavin and her four younger children were asleep upstairs as the tragedy unfolded.
The mother was found guilty of giving her son the prescription drugs that led to his death.
She was also found guilty of supplying Class-A drugs to another child under 16 and two counts of child cruelty.
A jury of eight women and four men found her guilty of all counts by unanimous verdicts after near seven hours deliberation.
Judge Paul Darlow adjourned sentencing until January 17 but remanded her into custody until a bail application at 2pm on Friday.
He has also ordered a pre-sentence report but warned custody was inevitable.
Strawbridge drank beer, schnapps and shared drugs with her son and his friend, the jury heard
Strawbridge wept as she was taken away away in handcuffs after being found guilty of all charges.
The trial, which spread over nine days, was held up after the defendant’s own mother died unexpectedly.
Strawbridge, who has worked in a charity shop, claimed that she put her son to bed unaware he had taken her powerful medication.
She denied giving either of the boys anything other than beer as Friday night turned to Saturday morning.
Tyler Peck was regularly given drugs by his mother ‘to help him cope with life’, the court heard
Strawbridge also claimed that Tyler’s friends were making up stories about her supplying them with drugs over the previous two years.
She claimed that Tyler’s father had offered them money to tell lies about her.
The court heard that Tyler had started smoking at the age of nine, using cannabis aged 12 before moving on to hard drugs when he was 13 or 14.
He had mostly grown up with his father and stepmother, but had been allowed to live with his mother for the last four months of his life – despite concerns of his mental health worker and social workers.