The mother and grandmother of a teenager who was allowed to “rot to death” on an inflatable mattress have been convicted of manslaughter.
Jordan Burling, 18, was found by paramedics wearing a soiled nappy and weighing less than six stone on June 30, 2016, the day of his death.
Dawn Cranston, 45, and Denise Cranston, 70, showed no emotion as they were told they had been found guilty of the manslaughter by unanimous verdict on Tuesday.
Leeds Crown Court heard that the teenager, who was covered in bed sores, resembled a victim of a Second World War death camp following months of neglect.
Burling’s 25-year-old sister Abigail Burling was found not guilty of manslaughter, but guilty of an alternative charge of causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable person.
The teenager’s bed sores were so deep that the bone had been left exposed.
Paramedic Bridget Shepherd, who treated him on June 20, 2016, said the teenager looked “very, very pale and very emaciated”.
His mother claimed her son “had not been eating for weeks” and his bone structure was clearly visible.
A post-mortem showed that he had died from acute bronchopneumonia as a result of his malnutrition, his immobility and his infected sores.
During the five-week trial a number of witnesses gave evidence, with the court hearing that his mother “did not seem bothered” as medics tried to revive him with CPR.
His grandmother reportedly remained seated in a nearby armchair during this time.
Police constable Ben McNamara, who arrived at the house just hours after Burling’s death, said that the first thing the deceased’s mother asked him was how much the funeral would cost.
“I was surprised by everyone’s lack of emotion. It is a strange thing to say after he had just died,” McNamara told the jury.
Before the trial, Dawn Cranston admitted endeavouring to conceal a birth after hiding the remains of her dead baby in a rucksack for about 14 years.
Dawn and Denise Cranston and Abigail Burling will be sentenced on Thursday morning at Leeds Crown Court.
They were granted bail until then.