A CARLISLE woman whose freckles “dropped off” after freshly boiled water was poured over her head has spoken of her trauma.
Charlotte Foster, 29, suffered first and second degree burns in the bizarre attack, which came after she and her partner’s brother had argued about how best to treat a poorly pet rat.
Ben Queen, 28, admitted causing her grievous bodily harm. He deliberately scalded her on August 4, 2021, Carlisle Crown Court heard.
Charlotte had gone to the defendant's home at his Margaret Creighton Gardens in Carlisle to demand an apology because he had made an offensive remark during the argument, said proseuctor Brendan Burke.
It was after Queen’s cup of coffee was spilled as Charlotte tried to move it aside that Queen snapped, dousing her with freshly boiled water from a kettle. The scalding liquid "cascaded" over her head, neck and body.
Screaming in agony, Charlotte fled to the bathroom and put herself - still fully clothed - into a cold shower before leaving and repeating the process at her mother’s home nearby.
After Queen was jailed for 21-months, Charlotte spoke of the lingering impact of the attack: how it had left her suffering extreme pain and nightmares; and about the unexpected loss of her freckles.
“I literally witnessed my freckles die,” she said.
“In the days after it happened, I watched my skin go black and turn different colours as it starting to heal. I couldn’t stop shaking. Within 24 hours my face swelled, and I couldn’t see out of my left eye.
“My ear very nearly required skin graft surgery because it wasn’t healing properly. Even now if there’s a sudden gust of wind it hurts.
“It was heart-breaking for my son to see me.”
When she was growing up, said Charlotte, she had disliked her freckles – but that changed when she suddenly lost them.
“Even now,” she said, “when I look into a mirror, it feels like there’s an Instagram filter over my face and I’m just waiting for it to go away so I can see my freckles again. It doesn’t feel like I’m looking at me.
“When I walk past a mirror, it’s as if I’m seeing somebody else; not me, but somebody who looks like me. For the past 18-months, it’s not felt as though I’m looking at me in the mirror.”
In court, Charlotte read her impact statement, detailing how she now has multiple red scald marks on her skin across much of her body.
She told the court: “In the early days after the assault I was suicidal from the pain. I suffered with constant nightmares about the assault multiple times a night. I had increased anxiety and needed an increase of medication for it.
“I suffer anxiety attacks, insomnia, nightmares and night terrors.” Hearing the click of a kettle switch still makes her flinch, she said. Doctors in Carlisle and at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary have told her that the cold showers she took will have dramatically reduced the damage to her skin.
Commenting on Queen’s sentence, Charlotte said she was pleased he was jailed. “What he did was evil,” she said. “What happened to me was horrible. Nobody should have to go through that kind of pain and trauma.”
Queen’s defence lawyer Jeff Smith said the defendant’s mother had made a statement which suggested her son did not pursue Charlotte Foster out of the kitchen after the attack. A probation officer said Queen felt remorse not only for Charlotte but also about the impact of the offence on the family generally.
Recorder Mark Ainsworth said pouring boiling water over Charlotte was a “deliberate act, designed to cause “significant injury, both physical and psychological.”
“The pain must have been intolerable and immediate,” continued the judge, adding that what happened had “torn” the defendant’s family apart.
Charlotte thanked the Witness Service workers Sally and Jo at the crown court for their support during the court process; and also Mr Burke.
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