Torture & Murder of Kelly Bates

Summary: Kelly Ann Bates was tortured by her 'boyfriend,' 48-year-old James Patterson Smith, for four weeks before he drowned her. During the weeks of torture, Smith partially scalped Kelly, gouged out both of her eyes and inflicted other horrific acts against her.

Margaret Bates felt deeply disturbed about James Patterson Smith the second she met him in her kitchen. She later stated she saw a bread knife lying on the counter and wanted to pick it up and stab him with it. “It was a bizarre thought,” she said of her desire to kill the man. “I would never normally think of anything so violent, and now I wonder whether it was some sort of sixth sense.”

Three years later, Smith killed her daughter, 17-year-old Kelly Anne Bates, after a four-week torture campaign that included partially scalping her and gouging out both her eyes while she was still alive.

On April 16, 1996, Smith called the Greater Manchester Police to say his girlfriend had drowned to death in the bathtub. He claimed that he tried to resuscitate her.

Police arrived at a gruesome scene. Kelly’s nude body was lying across the bed showing dozens of bruises and injuries. Blood covered the floors and walls of the house. It was clear that more than a drowning had occurred.

Authorities arrested Smith, and his story fell apart during the interrogation.

Kelly’s post-mortem examination told a horrific story of torture and abuse. Her cause of death was drowning and the manner of death was homicide.

The pathologist determined Kelly’s eyes had been removed “not less than five days and not more than three weeks before her death.” She had been starved and not drank water for several days before her death.

Her body had more than 150 separate injuries.

• scalding to her buttocks and left leg;
• burns on her thigh caused by the application of a hot iron;
• a fractured arm;
• multiple stab wounds caused by knives, forks and scissors;
• stab wounds inside her mouth;
• crush injuries to both hands;
• mutilation of her ears, nose, eyebrows, mouth, lips and genitalia;
• wounds caused by a spade and pruning shears; \
• both eyes gouged out;
• later stab wounds to the empty eye sockets;
• partial scalping.

“In my career, I have examined almost 600 victims of homicide but I have never come across injuries so extensive,” said the Bates pathologist.

Kelly had been tortured the last four weeks of her life, starting when Smith bound her to a radiator by a ligature around her neck and at other times, tied her by her hair to a chair.

Kelly had been starved, burned with a hot iron, strangled, and stabbed multiple times in the mouth, legs, and torso. Smith disfigured Kelly by cutting her genitals, scalp, and face with assorted sharp objects, including pruning shears.

How it Started

Kelly met James in 1993 when she was 14 years old.

Smith had a history of violence and torture toward women. It was frequent abuse and assaults that led to the demise of his marriage. James quickly moved on to other young girls and women, once attempting to drown a 15-year-old. He soon began dating 20-year-old Wendy Moorsehead, who fell pregnant with his child.

While dating Wendy, James started grooming the young Kelly. Margaret didn’t realize her daughter was dating the 48-year-old man until three years later when Kelly introduced him in the kitchen.

Weeks after introducing James to her mother, Kelly moved into his home in Gorton. Margaret allowed Kelly to move in with him as long as she maintained regular contact with her.

As the months passed, Kelly became withdrawn from her parents. On the rare occasion Kelly visited her mom, Margaret noticed bruises on her body. James treated Kelly like he had every other woman in his life; with abuse and disrespect.

James Patterson Smith Trial

Smith initially denied killing or torturing Kelly but later changed his story to claim Kelly drove him to kill her. Smith claimed Kelly abused him by regularly taunting him about his dead mother and injuring herself to blame him.

When asked to explain why he blinded, starved, and tortured Kelly, he claimed she dared him to do it.

The jury took one hour to convict Smith of Kelly Bates’ murder. Judge Justice Sachs sentenced him to life imprisonment with a minimum of 20 years to serve. He remains incarcerated in 2025.