A DRUG addict prostitute who bludgeoned her pensioner lover to death with a hammer and axe has been jailed for 12 years.

Deanha Neely admitted killing Derek Taylor, 71, in the Blackburn industrial unit they called home but always denied murder.

A jury at Preston Crown Court cleared the 32-year-old of murder but found her guilty of manslaughter on the grounds of loss of control.

Neely, formerly of Hollingreave Road, Burnley, was a 'chronic heroin addict' and Mr Taylor would travel to Liverpool to buy and then sell drugs to fund her habit, the court heard.

He would then give her a daily portion of crack cocaine and heroin to stop her from going back to working the streets.

But the court heard how the pair shared a violent relationship, which included Mr Taylor twice attempting to run the defendant over, before the fatal night on January 2 in the unit in Cross Fold.

Judge Mark Brown, The Honorary Recorder of Preston, criticised Neely for showing a lack of remorse.

He said: "The precise circumstances are not clear but I sentence you on the basis that Mr Taylor threatened to kill you and went towards you with a hammer in his hand, and fearing violence you lost control.

"Having done so it is clear that you must have picked up an axe and then struck Mr Taylor repeatedly with that axe and also in due course the hammer.

"He sustained a very many series of injuries.

"The pathologist stated on a conservative estimate there were 18 to 20 blows to the head and very considerable force must have been used.

"The skull was literally shattered and in addition Mr Taylor suffered bruising and bleeding to his brain.

"The circumstances of the killing should be considered against a backdrop of domestic violence.

"I proceed to sentence on the grounds Mr Taylor was violent and controlling towards you.

"At the same time when I assess your culpability it seems to me relevant that you had a very significant drug addiction and that Mr Taylor was a source of supply for you. As you said to the jury, 'he fed your fix and you fed his fix'.

He added: "I have detected little remorse for the killing, particularly when you were giving evidence."

Mr Taylor's body was found by police 17 days after his death when his son-in-law raised concerns.

He was naked from the waist down but covered with a blanket and tarpaulin and also had a cable around his neck and a plastic bag over his head, the court heard.

Prosecutor Guy Gozem said forensic experts had found plastic on the victim's thumbs, which he said suggested, despite his 'horrific injuries', Mr Taylor was still alive when the bag was placed over his had and he was trying to claw it off.

Mr Gozem said there had been a number of aggravating features in the case, including that Neely, had drained Mr Taylor's bank account of around £7,500, the severity of the violence and that she had left his body for 17 days.

The court heard how Neely had taken over Mr Taylor's Facebook account and sent out posts so people would think he was still alive, and even messaged the victim's sister.

Mr Gozem read a victim impact from Mr Taylor's son, Jason, in which he said he felt overwhelming feelings of anger and guilt that he wasn't there to protect his father.

It said: "My father never got the chance to fulfill his dream which was to travel to the South of France in his coach.

"The coach which meant so much to him. It was his all, his life and his passion."

Defence barrister Christopher Tehranis said: "Her response to the actions of the deceased was immediate rather than delayed and based on the verdict of the jury she must have been reacting to a threat of very real violence with a substantial weapon.

"The deceased man approached the defendant with a hammer, waving it about and effectively threatening to kill her.

"We accept the defendant's reaction was an extreme reaction.

"But she was in an industrial unit with no windows, the door was locked and there was no means of escape."