A devastated mother has spoken of her anger and heartbreak after hearing about her daughter’s final days.
38-year-old Kate Reilly spoke out after an inquest into the death of Courtney Lonsdale, 19.
Oliver Longstaff, the assistant coroner at Bradford’s Coroner’s Court, heard how the teen studied at Childcare Studies and how she wanted to go to a university.
Sadly, she was found dead at her apartment in Ovenden, Halifax, according to Yorkshire Live.
Police shared how they had visited Courtney’s apartment after being told of concerns for her wellbeing but they found the teen’s lifeless body next to her suicide notes.
Miss Reilly, who said she was from a ‘traveling family,’ told the court that she had Courtney when she was only 16.
The mother-of-four explained that she was in a relationship where she was a victim of domestic violence.
In 2010, Miss Reilley gave up her three children in foster care. She claimed that Courtney had suffered physical and mental abuse while in foster care.
She also said that the teen was “a mixed-up, confused little girl with a mental age of 12” and had been given an apartment at the age of 17, adding Courtney was left alone with financial problems and couldn’t pay her rent.
“I’m terribly disappointed in the system. I will leave no stone unturned to get justice for my daughter, Courtney,” she told the hearing.
Dr. Sohail Ahmed, Courtney’s GP, said the teen had been diagnosed with depression in 2019 and that she had previously attempted to commit suicide.
Susan Holden of Prospect, a company commissioned by Calderdale Council, said staff visited Courtney many times that year, with the last visit being in February 2020.
Ms. Hughes, a mental health practitioner, said: “She felt overwhelmed by her problems.”
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