A jilted boyfriend was jailed for nine years after he stabbed his ex-partner nine times in the neck with a screwdriver outside her daughter’s primary school.
George Simpson, 58, ambushed Carol Bailey, 50, before wrestling her to the ground and attacking her with the tool.
During the frenzied attack, which left the mum-of-six just minutes from death, he pinned her to the ground and screamed “I’m going to kill you, bitch.”
[half]
[/half]
[half]
[/half]
Witnesses saw Simpson pacing up and down Abbey Road, Bentilee, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs., just minutes before he struck at 11am on May 21 this year.
When police arrived they found Simpson weeping over her unconscious body and he admitted to officers what he had done.
Simpson was jailed for nine years after he admitted attempted murder at Stafford Crown Court on Friday.
Caging Simpson, Judge Simon Tonking told him: “You accept that you intended to kill Carol Bailey, and you very nearly succeeded.
“When she got to hospital, the cardiac surgeon said she was dying, and close to death.
“She was only saved by his prompt action and that of others.
“They carried out immediate open heart surgery to repair the damage that you had done.
“As a result of that attack she has suffered lasting effects.
“She has scarring, and suffers from nightmares.”
The court heard Simpson charged at Miss Bailey and wrestled her to the ground in the middle of the street before stabbing her outside the gates of Abbey Hulton Primary School.
She was rushed to hospital where she underwent emergency open-heart surgery for a damaged pulmonary artery.
Her condition was so bad that members of her family were banned from seeing her for 24 hours after medics said the slightest infection could kill her.
David Bennett, prosecuting, said: “She was walking home on her own when she noticed the defendant.
“He raced towards her and wrestled her to the ground.
“He said, ‘I’m going to kill you, you bitch’.”
The court heard Simpson, of Bentilee, Staffs., had lived with Miss Bailey for 18 months but she had ended the relationship after he punched and kicked her in January 2011.
But he refused to accept the relationship was over and continued to bombard her with jealous emails and text messages before the savage attack.
He also wrongly accused her of cheating him out of thousands of pounds for work he claimed he had carried out at her home.
Patrick Thompson, defending, said: “He had only one caution against his name, and before this relationship he was of good character.
“Because of the stress he was experiencing, he was suffering from a mental disorder at the time.
“That is no defence, but that is something the court can properly take into account.”
After the case, Detective Inspector Steve Maxfield, of Staffordshire Police, said: “This was a premeditated attempt by Simpson to seriously injure his former partner due to ongoing difficulties in their relationship.
“Simpson was intent on harming his victim and used force as he inflicted several puncture wounds.”
