Woman sentenced to 10 years in prison for plotting mother's murder. Source: Dr. Phil
After 23 years of abuse at the hands of her mother Dee Dee, who forced her to pretend she was sick and wheelchair-bound to attract sympathy and benefits from others, Gypsy Rose Blachard helped orchestrate her mum's horrific death.
In July 2016, Ms Blanchard pleaded guilty to second degree murder in the killing of her mother, who was stabbed to death in her bed by Gypsy's boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn while Gypsy hid in the bathroom of their home in the US state of Missouri.
The plea agreement with prosecutors resulted in a 10-year prison sentence, and in an interview with ABC America's 20/20from jail the 26-year-old has described the night her mother died.
"[Nicholas and I] called it Plan B ... I was getting desperate," she said.
Gypsy Blanchard recalls night mom was stabbed while she hid in the bathroom: "I wanted to go help her so bad, but I was so afraid to get up." #ABC2020 airs Friday night at 10|9c on ABC. https://t.co/JRrjymVfjppic.twitter.com/rnZNR0hYzf
"I texted him when my mother went to sleep, I let him in the door. There were gloves ... plastic gloves by the door. I put them there. He came in and he was wearing a hoodie and dark clothing and a scary T-shirt on that had evil clowns on it."
Ms Blanchard said Mr Godejohn told her to hide in the bathroom and cover her ears, but she could still hear her mother screaming as he attacked her.
"I heard her scream once, and there was more screaming but not like the kind in a horror film," Ms Blanchard said.
"Just like a startled scream, and she asked who was it that was in the bedroom."
"And she called out to my name about three or four times," she continued.
"And at that point, I wanted to go help her so bad, but I was so afraid to get up. It's like my body wouldn't move. Then everything just went quiet," she said.
Dee Dee (right) told people Gypsy had leukaemia, cerebral palsy and other conditions, and forced her to undergo unnecessary operations.
Ms Blanchard said she and Mr Godejohn, who she met on a Christian dating website, had sex in her bedroom right after the murder.
They then left the house and hid out in a hotel for several days, news.com.au reported.
"It would come in times of happiness, little spurts of happiness, but I would have breakdowns or I'd start crying, feeling remorse, guilt, and at the same time, also missing her at the same time, worry about what, what I'd just done. She's gone," she said about the days after the killing.
Family and authorities were alerted to Dee Dee's death after Ms Blanchard posted "That b***** is dead" on a Facebook account she shared with her mother.
Gypsy is a victim of Munchausen by proxy, a form of abuse where a parent or guardian fabricates or exaggerates sickness in a child to get sympathy and attention.
For decades she underwent unnecessary operations, such as having her salivary glands removed, was force-fed unnecessary medication, was made to have a feeding tube, had her head shaved, had numbing gel rubbed on her gums to make her drool and was forbidden from revealing to anyone she did not need to be wheelchair-bound.
"[My mother] told me if I was to contact anybody and tell them, she would take a hammer to my fingers," Gypsy told 20/20.
"She had taken handcuffs and a dog leash and tied it together and tied me to the bed. I just don't understand how somebody could do this to their child.
"I was so young, so me looking up to her so much and just believing she knows best, I didn't question it," she said.
"It's sad because I think about all the times that I could have been walking around like a normal person, skating, riding bikes and stuff, and I've never done any of that."
Nicholas Godejohn (left) is on trial for his part in the murder, while Gypsy Blanchard (right) pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder and is serving 10 years. Photo / Supplied
It seems Dee Dee was able to fool doctors into believing Gypsy had leukaemia, cerebral palsy and other conditions by claiming her medical records had been destroyed in Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Several doctors had suspected that Dee Dee was faking Gypsy's illness, even reporting her to social workers, but nothing was done.
Medical records show Gypsy was treated by at least 150 doctors across different states.
Gypsy says she is remorseful for orchestrating her mother's murder.
"All I could hope is that wherever she is, that she still loves me in some small way. And I want her to know that I am sorry. I am so sorry."
But she also describes her life of abuse at the hands of her mother as a "prison".
"The prison that I was living in before, with my mum, it's, like, I couldn't walk. I couldn't eat. I couldn't have friends. I couldn't go outside, you know, and play with friends or anything."
"Over here [in jail], I feel like I'm freer in prison, than with living with my mum. Because now, I'm allowed to … just live like a normal woman," she said.
