Killing of Maria Colwell

Forty years after her death, the case of Maria Colwell has remained in collective memory and has often been referred to when similar cases have come to light, such as the death of Victoria Climbié in 2000, Peter Connelly in 2007 and Daniel Pelka in 2012.

On the night of 6 January 1973, Kepple arrived home at 11:30pm to find Maria still awake and watching television. Her mother, fearing her drunk and violent husband, had kept Maria up. Maria refused to acknowledge him upon his return home and he responded violently. He repeatedly kicked her, leaving her with severe injuries both internal and external; then he went to bed. The following morning he wheeled Maria in a pram to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton with severe internal injuries including brain damage; she died shortly after arrival. Maria had an empty stomach when she died. Both her eyes were blackened and she had a fractured rib.

Her situation changed drastically when on 22 October 1971 she returned to live with her biological mother Pauline Kepple and her partner William Kepple on the Whitehawk council estate in Brighton, England.

Maria Colwell (26 March 1965 – 6 January 1973) was an English child who was killed by her stepfather in January 1973. The case was widely reported at the time and resulted in a public enquiry: Committee of Inquiry into the Care and Supervision Provided in Relation to Maria Colwell (1974). Report of the Committee of Inquiry into the Care and Supervision provided by local authorities and other agencies in Relation to Maria Colwell and the co-ordination between them. (Chairman: T.G. Field-Fisher)

Maria was born on 26 March 1965. When she was a few months old her father Raymond Colwell died and subsequently Maria and her siblings were all placed in foster care. In 1966, she was placed with her aunt and uncle, Doris and Bob Cooper. There she was said to be very happy and well looked after.