What Makes Kelly Anne Bates' Murder One of History's Most Unsettling Crimes?

James Patterson Smith informed the Greater Manchester Police on April 16, 1996, that Kelly Anne Bates, his adolescent girlfriend, had unintentionally drowned in the bathtub. She passed away at the age of barely 17, despite the fact that he claimed to have tried to revive her.

When the police finally got to Smith's residence, the situation was more worse than they could have ever imagined. Bates was not only dead, but her blood was discovered all over the home, and it was obvious that she had had many horrifying injuries prior to her "drowning."

James Patterson Smith was swiftly taken into custody by the authorities, and his tale quickly came apart. The autopsy results soon revealed that Kelly Anne Bates had been subjected to weeks of terrible torture by Smith before she succumbed to her injuries.

"In my career, I have examined over 600 victims of homicide, but I have never come across injuries so severe," the pathologist subsequently said. The horrifying account of Kelly Anne Bates' gruesome murder by James Patterson Smith is presented here.

How Kelly Anne Bates Was Trapped By James Patterson Smith

Kelly Anne, Margaret Bates' 16-year-old daughter, was standing in the kitchen when she got home one day from work in Hattersley, England. Kelly Anne had brought her lover home for the first time, something her mother was unaware of. James Patterson Smith entered the room after hearing footsteps on the stairs.

When Margaret learned that Smith was in his mid-40s, she was astounded. No mother would be pleased to find that their daughter was seeing someone who was so much older than she was, it goes without saying. Margaret, though, experienced more than that. There was a really unsettling quality to Smith.

“I didn't want this man to be with my kid. I clearly remember wanting to take up our bread knife and stab him in the back when I saw it in the kitchen”, she recalled in a later interview. Margaret would subsequently come to regret her choice not to stab Smith there and then, as her daughter's relationship with James Patterson Smith would soon come to an end when he cruelly tormented and murdered her, prompting the court to offer post-trial counseling to the jury in his trial.

Kelly Anne Bates was only 14 when the pair first met, and up until that fatal moment in the kitchen, they had mainly kept their relationship a secret from her mother.

Shortly after their encounter in the kitchen in November 1995, Kelly Anne moved in with the jobless Smith in neighboring Gorton. Her parents were hesitant about the choice, but they accepted it as long as she maintained a constant line of communication.

Yet their formerly vivacious daughter became more introverted over the following few months. Her parents also observed marks on her arms when she paid a brief visit.

In the past, James Patterson Smith frequently mistreated the ladies he shared a home with. His first marriage broke up due to allegations of physical abuse. And similar tales were shared by other women Smith had dated. Even once he attempted to drown his lover, who was 15 years old.

Kelly Anne Bates' Brutal Murder and Torture

The full degree of the assault was first revealed on April 16, 1996, when Smith entered the Gorton Police Station and claimed that Kelly Anne Bates had drowned due to their disagreement while she was in the bath (how exactly he framed this as an accident to police remains unclear).

Kelly Anne's injuries, however, revealed a far darker tale when Kelly Anne's body was later discovered inside Smith's residence.

The pathologist who examined the deceased discovered more than 150 wounds that had been sustained over a minimum of one month. Bates was starved by Smith in the weeks before she passed away, and she even had her chained to a radiator by her hair. She had been stabbed several times in the legs, body, and mouth in addition to being strangled and burnt with a hot iron. He had also mutilated her by using various implements, such as pruning shears, to slash at her scalp, face, and genitalia. At least five days passed before he ultimately killed her by drowning her in the bathtub. He had even gouged out her eyes.

James Patterson Smith is going to court

The case was brought to trial and the jury was shown evidence of the torture Bates had gone through by the prosecution. Anguish and torture to the point of mental breakdown and collapse would have resulted from the severe physical suffering, according to one prosecutor.

Several victims of Smith's abuse testified at the trial to build a picture of a sexist guy who used violence to manipulate people out of an obsession with jealousy.

Smith countered that he was the true victim. He stated that Bates' insults caused him to kill her. He muttered, "She put me through hell, twisting me up.“ He even claimed that she caused some of her wounds on herself in an effort to harm his reputation.

The jury, however, didn't believe him and soon declared James Patterson Smith, 49, guilty of killing Kelly Anne Bates. He was given a minimum term of 20 years in jail on November 19, 1997 (some sources claim 25), and he is still serving that sentence today.

Margaret Bates, on the other hand, is still reminded of the time she first met Smith in the kitchen. She admitted that having the urge to murder him there and then was "bizarre." "I would never ordinarily think of something that violent, and now I wonder whether it was some sort of sixth sense," she added.