00:00I would like to praise the extraordinary bravery of Desmond Bernard in coming
00:04forward and giving voice to his little sister, whose death 48 years ago had long
00:10been believed to be a tragic accident. Today's verdict finally confirms the
00:15dark truth, that five-year-old Andrea, a child who should have been safe in her
00:19own home, died as a result of horrific burn injuries caused by the very person
00:24entrusted to protect her and likely as punishment for minor mischief. Without
00:31Mr. Bernard's courage, Janice Nix would never have been held accountable for her
00:35actions. As a frightened eight-year-old boy who, as today's verdicts prove, was
00:40himself subjected to physical abuse by his stepmother, Desmond was present in the
00:45family home when Andrea was immersed in a scalding hot bath. She survived for almost
00:51six weeks enduring what must have been unimaginable pain. Silenced at the time
00:57by fear, Desmond carried that burden for many years. As an adult, he found the
01:03strength to speak with remarkable dignity and resolve, and that courage has now
01:08delivered justice for his sister and for Desmond himself. During a life of crime,
01:14Janice Nix would carry a gun, make drug deals worth tens of thousands of pounds,
01:20drive around Brixton in a white leather interior Suzuki Vitara jeep with Nasty Girl
01:28written in red and silver on its side, and once served a nine-year prison sentence.
01:34Andrea's death was treated as an accident for nearly half a century until her brother,
01:40Desmond Bernard, contacted police with new information in September of 2022.
01:46The year before the police investigation was launched, Nix published a book on her life
01:53titled Breaking Out.
01:55In stark contrast to the strength shown by Andrea's brother, are the selfish and cowardly actions of
02:01their stepmother, Mrs Nix, then known as Thomas, who for decades maintained a web of lies,
02:08misleading authorities, deceiving the family and attempting to rewrite the truth.
02:14Whatever image she later sought to present, true accountability and genuine atonement begin with
02:21honesty, and that is something she consistently avoided. Andrea had an all too brief childhood.
02:28She never had the chance to grow up. She was denied the life she deserved. Today's verdict cannot change
02:35change that, but it does finally acknowledge the truth of what happened to her.
02:39Our thoughts remain with Andrea's family. At the heart of this case is a little girl who should never
02:45have been harmed, and the circumstances of her death concocted as a fictional narrative.
02:51Today is about truth, accountability, and ensuring that Andrea's story is finally told with honesty.
02:58There's two days.
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