Accused mother not guilty of murdering children
Fiona Adams was accused of killing two of her children during a house fire
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Tuesday, 22, Feb 2011 06:43
by Anna Seward
A mother has been cleared of killing two of her children in a house fire in Buxton, Derbyshire last year.
A jury at Nottingham Crown Court found Fiona Adams, 24, not guilty of murdering daughter Niamh, five, and son Cayden, two.
Ms Adams escaped from the house in Edale Way by jumping from an upstairs window on the night of April 23rd 2010.
She rescued her youngest child Kiernan, but her other two children died in the blaze.
During the trial, prosecutors told the court that Ms Adams had started the fire deliberately because she wanted to get attention from her then partner James Maynard.
But the jury acquitted her of murder, arson and grievous bodily harm.
Speaking outside the court today (Tuesday), Ms Adams wept silently as a statement was read on her behalf.
It said: "Today's verdict has been long awaited by Fiona and her family and is of course welcomed."
Ms Adams' brother, Jason, said that she would now be able to grieve the loss of her two oldest children, after being prevented from attending their funeral.
Mr Maynard, Ms Adams' former partner and the father of all three children, said after the verdicts that he had never doubted her innocence.
"When you've been in a relationship for a length of time with someone you know them inside and out and I just knew she wasn't responsible," he said.
"As a mum she was absolutely brilliant, couldn't have asked for a better mum."
Derbyshire Police are appointing an independent team to review the case.
In a statement, the police force said: "The evidence was heard by the jury, who felt it was not sufficient enough to find Fiona guilty.
"During our inquiry, we found no evidence to suggest that anyone else was responsible for the fire."