A MAN told care home staff to call the police after pushing his mother off a balcony to her death, a court heard.

Robert Knight, 52, is standing trial for the murder of his mother June Knight, 79, who died in Langley Lodge Nursing Home in Imperial Avenue, Westcliff, in December last year.

The court heard Mrs Knight fell 13 and a half feet from a balcony at the care home to the ground, resulting in multiple severe injuries.

A jury at Basildon Crown Court was told Knight, of The Fairway, Leigh, admits he killed his mother on December 10, but had lost his self-control and so did not murder her.

Andrew Jackson, prosecuting, told the jury Mrs Knight suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease, and had been in Langley Lodge since May 2018.

He said she was in the final stages of her natural life and had been given a “do not resuscitate” label should her condition deteriorate.

He said: “In December, Mrs Knight became very unwell, as well as suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and a condition that made her muscles contract, she could not keep her food down.

“She could not talk, but could say the word ‘ouch’ when she was in pain to signal how she was feeling. She recognised her son, the defendant, and care home staff, and responded well to music she liked and food she enjoyed eating.

“The defendant had visited the home at 2.30pm on December 10 and stayed there until 5.30pm. Care home staff said he was calm, and he was told his mother was calm and not in pain.”

Mr Jackson said Knight had agreed with care home staff that his mother’s GP would be available the next day to see her, and he then left to teach an adult languages class at Southend High School For Girls, before returning to the care home at approximately 9.45pm.

Mr Jackson said: “CCTV footage shows him entering the home and going straight up the stairs. Footage shows him stop, and look towards the direction of the office area. It is the prosecution’s case that he was making sure he wouldn’t be discovered, and that he knew what he was going to do.

“He entered his mother’s room on the first floor, picked her up from her bed, and took her out through a fire escape door, which triggered an automatic alarm.

“The defendant later said when he was carrying her, his mother was conscious and looking at him. She was probably terrified of what was about to happen.

“On the balcony outside the door, he placed his mother on the railing, and pushed her off, where she fell over 13 feet to the ground.

“She suffered multiple injuries, but the one most severe was a skull fracture, which led to a catastrophic brain injury. She was alive when her head hit the ground.

“The defendant did not go to where his mother was lying, but back into the building.

"A member of staff saw him near the fire escape, where he shouted ‘call the police, I’ve just killed my mother’ and pointing at the fire escape saying ‘I threw her off there’.”

Mr Jackson said police arrested Knight shortly afterwards, and when later questioned he said his mother’s illness had ‘distressed’ him, and couldn’t bear to see his mother suffer, having decided on the day that “he would be the one to do it”.

Mr Jackson added: “Nothing about this killing can be viewed as compassionate or merciful. He was aware of what he was doing, he had decided beforehand. This was murder.”

The trial, which is expected to last until Thursday, continues.