‘How could you say you loved someone if you left them to die’
John Michie tells court about day of daughter’s death
Holby City and Taggart actor John Michie has told a court his daughter’s boyfriend did not love her because he let her die from an overdose.
Louella Fletcher-michie, 24, was given drugs by her on-off boyfriend Ceon Broughton, and died as her parents rushed to help her, it is alleged.
Mr Michie wept at Winchester Crown Court yesterday as he gave evidence about the day of her death.
Louella took the class A party drug 2-CP at Bestival in Dorset on 10 September, 2017 and died in woodland the night before she turned 25.
Broughton, 29, of Enfield in north London, denies manslaughter and supplying Louella with the drug.
The jury heard how her family were eating Sunday dinner in their north London home when they received a call from Broughton, in which Louella could also be heard.
Mr Michie said: “The thing that I most remember was that Louella seemed very distressed. I could hear her in the background shouting things like, ‘I hate you, I don’t trust you’, obviously referring to Ceon.” He added: “I’ve never heard her speak in that way. It almost didn’t sound like her.”
Mr Michie said Broughton’s voice sounded “watery”, “without energy in it” and he did not seem “compos mentis”.
“He didn’t seem to be concerned, I thought,” Mr Michie said. “Obviously any normal person would be concerned.”
Louella’s worried parents jumped in their car to go to find their daughter at the festival, but they struggled to gain entry and persuade security officials to look for her.
The couple’s daughter was eventually found dead by a steward in the woodland, 400m from the festival’s hospital tent, at around 1am after Broughtonlefthertoseekhelp.
Mr Michie said he had thought Louella and Broughton’s relationship was “beautiful to see” and that he issued a statement in support of Broughton following press reports he was allegedly involved in murder.
But the actor said he had not realised “how he had not taken her to get help, how he had seen her in a very, very distressed state and how, I believe, he possibly even filmed her after she has died”.
He said: “I think Louella loved Ceon. I’m not sure he loved her. I don’t know how you could ever say you loved someone if you left them to die in front of you.”
The court was previously shown a 50-minute video of Louella in which she shouts at Broughton to “film me”.
The trial continues.