When emergency crews arrived at a townhouse at 392 Wilkins Street in south London on July 8, 2021, they came across a bloody and dirty mess. Within seconds they made a grim discovery when they found the lifeless body of Elzbieta (Ella) Cabala, 59, on the floor. An autopsy would later reveal that she suffered more than 50 injuries to her neck after being strangled. At the same time on that day, London Police officers found her 44-year-old daughter, Barbara Cabala, also on the floor with blood on her clothes. During the jury trial, the court heard that the mother and daughter had a tumultuous relationship over a number of years and that it came to a head that summer day. When she testified, the accused claimed she acted in self defence and that her mother was the aggressor. However, the jury didn’t see it that way and found her guilty on one count of manslaughter. At the sentencing hearing on Monday, Justice Patricia Moore spoke messy altercation that involved objects like terra cotta pots being thrown throughout the townhouse. “Ms. Cabala described the fight as the culmination of a violent long-standing history with her mother,” the judge said. While contemplating an appropriate sentence, Justice Moore said, “The killing of a parent will generally track the same sentence range as the killing of an intimate partner ... both offences are a profound breach of trust.” The judge told the court that since the incident, Cabala has been hospitalized, suicidal, and now suffers from multiple sclerosis. The Crown asked that she serve an eight-to-10-year prison term, with the defence requesting a conditional sentence. “I understand that you shared a complicated relationship with your mother, and I accept your genuine remorse,” Justice Moore told Cabala, In the end, the judge gave her a six-year prison sentence with credit for time already served. Cabala was then led away to start serving five and a half years behind bars.
