Jessica Camilleri stabbed her mother at least 100 times with seven knives, four of which ended up broken. Rita Camilleri was 57 years old and her daughter’s primary caregiver. It happened on July 20, 2019, at the home they shared in St Clair, in western Sydney.
After the attack, Jessica took her mother’s head out into the street intending to show it to the neighbors. When the police arrived, a body camera recorded her saying: “I killed my mum”. Rita’s 4-year-old grandchild was also in the house and suffered a minor injury.
The court charged her with murder, but her defense argued that her complex, overlapping psychiatric disorders had deprived her of self-control. In December 2020, the jury found her guilty of manslaughter. Judge Helen Wilson sentenced her to 21 years and 7 months, describing it as the most serious manslaughter possible.
