Leticia Aalayah
Wright
2002 - November
18, 2006
In the weeks before
she was killed, neighbors would look up and see Leticia standing in her
bedroom, looking out the window. It was as if she was holding a vigil,
for herself. She would smile and wave as the people waved at her, however,
she just looked so sad. Neighbors said that the curtains were closed in
the house in the last week of Leticia's life and there wasn't much sign
of anyone living there. Neighbors called Social Services who would admit,
later, that they had failed this little girl.
On October 13, 2006,
social workers went to visit Leticia and her mother at their home. Linda
Blackie and Nichol Stephenson noticed that Leticia was quite. They asked
her to bring them some of her toys and she did. Leticia seemed to be of
normal weight and had no marks that were immediately obvious to the social
workers. A return visit on October 24, 2006, showed that Leticia had been
registered with a nursery, which seemed to satisfy the social workers and
Leticia's case was closed. If they had bothered to keep her case open and
to check back with her, they would have found that after week, she stopped
going to school.
Investigators believed
that Leticia's abuse was made worse by the visit from the social workers.
On November 17, 2006, Leticia would die at the hands of her mother and
her mothers boyfriend who was addicted to Cannabis. Leticia was found lying
on the floor, beaten and naked with burns on her body, she was close to
death. It had only been one month since social workers had been to
visit her. Leticia was taken to the hospital where the paramedics and hospital
staff tried to save her, they were not able to and with over 100 injuries
to her little body,
Leticia died the
next day, November 18, 2006.
Sharon Wright and
Peter McKenzie-Seaton are believed to have been taking turns beating and
burning Leticia until her body just gave out and could not longer take
the abuse and pain that was described by detectives as unimaginable. When
they were questioned, each of them placed the blame on the other. Sharon
said that Peter had beaten on Leticia because he was upset at not being
able to afford to buy any Cannabis. Peter did admit to biting Leticia,
however, he claimed he was never with her alone.
In court, the jury
heard testimony about the abuse that Leticia had suffered at the hands
of these people. Leticia had injuries to her head that were described by
a doctor as similar to those someone would receive if they had been in
a major car crash. The back of her head was a "boggy mass" and her scalp
was infected. Her body had many bruises, bite marks and cigarette burns.
After a search of the home, Forensics officers found clumps of her hair
in a wheelie bin. There were also traces of her blood on clothing and a
pair of fur lined hand cuffs which were left in the kitchen. Leticia's
hair had left drag marks, in blood, on the wall in the living room.
It was revealed that
at several points in her life, Leticia told two of her aunts that Peter,
who had a history of violence, would come to her room and for no reason
at all, he would hit her. Leticia also made it clear that she didn't like
her mother. On at least one occasion, she was visibly upset because she
didn't want to return to her mother after a visit with her biological father,
Zaheer Hussain.
Outside of the court
room, Detective Paul Taylor, who was in charge of the murder investigation
said that these people were evil:
"Leticia was
a beautiful, healthy girl who tragically met a violent and brutal death
at the hands of her
own mother
and Peter McKenzie-Seaton. The level of cruelty she was subjected to beggars
belief"
Leticia's father
said that he felt he would never get over his daughters death:
"She was a
beautiful little girl, always happy and smiling. We will always remember
her."
The Kirklees Council
commissioned a report by an independent professional and though they found
that the case could have been handled differently, no one could have predicted
what would happen to Leticia. Paul Johnson of the Safeguarding Children
Board said:
"The tragic
death of Leticia Wright in the most dreadful of circumstances could not
have been
foreseen by
any of the people in the local authority who dealt with her and her mother"
In August of 2007,
Sharon Wright who was 22 and Peter McKenzie-Seaton who was 21, were both
found guilty and would be sentenced on August 10, 2007
"This
has truly been an horrific case.
Detective
Paul Taylor
Sharon and Peter
were both sentenced to life in prison with each of them having to serve
a minimum of 23 for what they did to Leticia.
"Sharon
Wright was a very heavy-handed, unloving, uncaring mother. What we also
know is
that Peter
Seaton was a man of violence, and he was pretty inadequate in a lot of
ways. As
individuals
they were unpleasant people. When they got together they were a fatal combination.
They wanted
to be together and Leticia was in the way"
Detective
Paul Taylor
Statement from
Leticia Aaliyah’s dad,
Zaheer Hussain
and family
As a family we desperately
miss Leticia and wish she was here with us now. We haven't got over the
shock of her loss and we don’t think we ever will. The only comfort we
can take from this situation is the help and support shown to us by family,
friends and people who knew Leticia.
She was a beautiful
little girl, always happy and smiling, and she had everything to live for.
Losing Leticia has left a huge gap in our lives.
We would like to
thank the people responsible for bringing this matter to court. Now that
the legal process has finished, we hope that Leticia can rest in peace,
and hopefully as a family we can start to move on. We will always remember
her and she will always be in our hearts.
For information about
preventing child abuse in England click below. If they can't help you,
ask for someone who can. NEVER give up looking for help for an abused
child!
Call this number
to report child abuse ANY WHERE in the United States!
1-800-4-A-Child
1-800-422-4453
   
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My sincerest appreciation goes out to
Diane Trembly for allowing me to use one
of her beautiful Angels to make the graphics
for this set. Please visit her site,
by clicking the link below, to see all
of her amazing work.
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