Lover’s claim that he accidentally paralysed mother of two in ‘playfight’ is not plausible, expert tells court

A teacher accused of deliberately breaking his lover’s neck cannot have been paralyzed by a fight or falling out of bed, a hearing heard today.

Robert Easom, 56, claims he did not intend to seriously injure Trudi Burgess, 57, when he allegedly attacked her after threatening to end their relationship.

He told police the couple had been “fighting” and when he realized Ms Burgess was seriously injured he was so “traumatized” that he initially said she had fallen out of bed.

But specialist orthopedic surgeon Richard Coombes told the jury sitting at Preston Crown Court that ‘significant force’ would have been needed to break Ms Burgess’ neck.

Scans at the Royal Preston Hospital revealed fractures and dislocation of vertebrae in his spine, as well as ‘complete disruption’ of his spinal ligaments.

He remains tetraplegic, meaning he is paralyzed from the chest down and requires 24-hour care.

Mr Coombes said: ‘In my view a serious cervical spinal cord injury cannot have been caused during play fighting…(or) as a result of falling out of bed.’

‘This type of spinal cord injury can only be caused by the application of excessive force…(and) as a result of serious assault.’

The court heard Easom and Mrs Burgess met around 2017, at a time when Burgess was “emotionally vulnerable” and grieving the loss of her husband Craig, who died of a brain tumor a year earlier.

Easom initially told police that Ms Burgess had fallen out of bed and was injured when the play fight ‘went bad’.

Ms Burgess, who has two adult children, was told she would never walk again

Easom, a landscape gardener, had worked for Burgess’ sister for 23 years and the two knew each other from social events.

The relationship was initially ‘loving and passionate’ but turned violent in 2021, the jury was told.

The court heard that in one incident the same year, Easom wrapped Ms Burgess’s head in a sheet until she could not breathe.

Then, another January, they were returning from dinner with friends when he headbutted her in the car after complaining that they couldn’t have them over because she didn’t have enough plates or cutlery at her house.

Prosecutor Sarah Magill said: ‘Robert Easom lost his temper and speeded, frightening Miss Burgess. He ran away from the car in fear of getting away from her.’

Easom admitted both these attacks and breaking Ms Burgess’ neck.

But he denies doing so deliberately and Judge Robert Altham told the jury the ‘ultimate issue’ they had to decide was whether Easom ‘actually intended to cause serious bodily harm’.

‘This is an extremely distressing case in which a horrific injury has occurred, but your role is essentially an analytical one,’ the judge said.

‘The question is whether this defendant actually intended to cause serious bodily harm at the time he actually caused the serious injury.’

The judge said the prosecution did not have to prove that the injury was ‘intentional or planned’ and emphasized: ‘An intention can appear suddenly.

‘Just because you immediately regret an action does not mean that it was not intentional.’

The court heard the mother-of-two became ‘alienated’ from her family during her relationship with Easom and ‘finally mustered the courage to leave’ on February 17 this year.

Ms Burgess and her musician husband Craig, who died of a brain tumor nearly nine years ago, in November 2016

The court heard Ms Burgess was ’emotionally vulnerable’ and was still grieving the loss of her husband Craig (pictured) when she met Easom eight years ago.

But after allegedly telling Easom that their relationship was over, he flew into an ‘uncontrollable’ rage and attacked her.

In a harrowing video filmed while she was on a ventilator in intensive care, Ms Burgess told the jury she thought she was ‘going to die’.

“He grabbed my head and pushed it down with both hands, it felt like he was folded into my chest,” Ms Burgess said.

‘I’ve never felt anything like this, I felt my neck snap and I started to feel myself going numb.

‘I think I screamed but… I had no voice, he just kept folding my head in, in, and in.

‘ I kept thinking, ‘It’s going to stop now’ and ‘I’m going to die.’

‘He kept doing this and the whole time he was saying: ‘Shut up, shut up, I’ll shut you up, stop talking, stop talking.

I was trying to say, ‘You’re killing me’ (but) I couldn’t speak. ‘I thought I was dying.’

Initially Easom told Ms Burgess he was ‘fine’ but the woman begged him to call an ambulance and he eventually called 999, telling the operator: ‘He fell out of bed and landed really badly.’

Ms Burgess also told the call handler they were playing a ‘fighting game’ to ‘protect’ her.

But the court heard Ms Burgess spoke to police when she realized how seriously injured she was and said Easom had deliberately harmed her.

He was arrested two days later and in a prepared statement denied allegations of deliberately causing grievous bodily harm to Ms Burgess.

“I love Trudi more than life itself and would never do anything to intentionally hurt her,” Easom said.

He later added: ‘I loved her (Trudi) from the moment I saw her and I still do today, we get on so well.’

Asked why he told the officer the couple had fought and Miss Burgess had fallen out of bed, Easom said: ‘I was so traumatized I couldn’t think straight at all.

‘This is just a play fight gone wrong and it’s a complete accident.’

The trial continues.