A landscape gardener is now facing a life sentence after a jury swiftly convicted him of brutally injuring his teacher girlfriend, leading to her paralysis, following her threat to end their relationship.

Trudi Burgess, aged 57, suffered paralysis from the chest down after Robert Easom, 56, described as a ‘manipulative bully,’ assaulted her in a fit of uncontrollable rage.

Witnesses likened Easom to a ‘monster’ and compared his strength to “The Incredible Hulk” as he pinned Burgess, a mother of two, facedown on the bed, using his full body weight to break her neck.

In a gripping account recorded from her hospital bed, Ms. Burgess recounted the chilling moment she heard her spine snap, and the ensuing numbness that overtook her body.

While Easom confessed to causing the injury that left Ms. Burgess a tetraplegic in need of constant care, he denied any intent to cause severe harm, claiming, “I love Trudi more than life itself.”

Despite his claims, the jury at Preston Crown Court quickly reached a verdict in under 30 minutes, finding Easom guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, after he declined to testify in his own defense.

Easom also admitted two counts of assault but it can now be revealed that, ahead of the start of the four-day trial last week, he also pleaded guilty to coercive and controlling behaviour during the course of the couple’s eight-year relationship. 

He will be sentenced in February.

Following the verdict, Ms Burgess’ brother-in-law, Tim Bashall, speaking on behalf of Ms Burgess’ wider family, told the Mail: ‘We are relieved the jury came to the right verdict and justice has been done.

‘But there are no winners in this case, there’s no jubilation. Trudi will not get her life back and she still has to live with her injuries for the rest of her life.’

Trudi Burgess, 57, was left paralysed from the neck down and thought she was going to die after Robert Easom flew into an ‘uncontrollable’ rage and launched his ‘vicious’ attack 

 Easom, 56, a landscape gardener, refused to give evidence in his own defence

Ms Burgess, a former secondary school teacher, who taught French and Spanish, has been told she will never walk again

Police described Easom as a ‘bully,’ who has a ‘repulsive’ attitude to women.

Detective Constable Bethanie Kirk, of Lancashire police, said: ‘Robert Easom is a manipulative and controlling individual with a warped sense of entitlement and repulsive views towards women.

‘He poses a significant risk due to his violent and abusive behaviour. I welcome these convictions, which expose his abhorrent conduct for all to see.

The officer commended Ms Burgess for her ‘incredible bravery,’ adding: ‘Easom’s cowardly and sustained abuse has had a profound and lasting impact on her life and her loved ones. I hope she can now begin rebuilding her life, free from his control.’

Sarah Magill, prosecuting, told the jury that Ms Burgess was grieving the death of her husband, Craig, from a brain tumour and was ’emotionally vulnerable’ when she met Easom, who was her sister’s gardener, in 2017.

Initially their relationship was loving and passionate, but, after around seven months, Easom became abusive, violent and controlling.

Ms Burgess, who logged the abuse in the notes section of her mobile phone, described how, over time, Easom eroded her self-esteem and she became trapped in a cycle of abuse. 

He degraded her by forcing her to clean up spilled food, pushed her against furniture, shouted at her and drove dangerously to frighten her.

In February 2018, during a trip to York, Easom dragged her around a hotel bathroom and threatened her, before quoting a line from the Sylvester Stallone film Rambo: ‘Don’t push or I’ll give you a war.’

When she tried to leave, he begged her to stay and acted remorseful.

In another incident, in 2019, Easom grabbed her glass of wine, before dragging her upstairs by the head, banging her against each step.

During another holiday to York, in 2021, he assaulted Ms Burgess by wrapping her head in a bed sheet until she was unable to breathe. 

The next day, he dismissed the attack, claiming he was ‘just trying to teach her a lesson’.

During another assault, in January, he headbutted her while they were driving home from dinner with friends after she complained they would not be able to host them back because he did not have enough crockery or cutlery.

By February 17 this year Ms Burgess had had enough and ‘finally plucked up the courage to leave’.

She had stayed the night at Easom’s home, in Chipping, in the Ribble Valley, near Chorley, and was drinking a cup of tea in bed the following morning when he asked her if she was making cottage pie for dinner, which was her usual Monday routine.

She replied, telling him she would not be cooking for him and the relationship was over.

But, Ms Magill said, Easom, who has three children from a previous relationship, including a son who coincidentally was paralysed in a car accident, flew into a ‘blind’ and ‘uncontrollable’ rage.

‘He got hold of my head, and pushed it with both his hands down, it felt like it just folded in(to) my chest,’ as sobbing Ms Burgess said in video evidence played to the jury.

Ms Burgess and her late husband, Craig, who died of  a brain tumour in 2016. The couple met when they were both 17. They were in a successful band and secured a record deal together

Mr and Mrs Burgess were together for almost 30 years before he was diagnosed with brain cancer

‘I’ve never felt anything like it, I felt my neck break, and I started to feel that I was going numb.

‘I think I screamed, but …I had no voice, he just kept folding my head in and in and in.

‘I kept thinking, “He’s gonna stop now”, and, “I’m gonna die”.

‘He kept doing it, and all the while he was going, “Shut the f*** up, f***ing shut up, I’ll shut you up, stop talking, stop talking”.

‘I was trying to say, “You’re killing me”, (but) I couldn’t speak. I thought I was about to die.’

Afterwards she told Easom: ‘Oh my God, I can’t feel anything in my body, you’ve ruined both our lives.’

Initially, he didn’t believe her but she begged him to call an ambulance and eventually he dialled 999, telling the operator: ‘She’s fallen out of bed and just landed in a bad way really.’

He later told police the couple had been involved in a ‘playfight that went wrong’.

Tobias Smith, defending, said his client accepted that both those claims were ‘lies’.

Judge Robert Altham told Easom that Ms Burgess planned to read her victim impact statement to the court during his sentencing hearing in February and it would reflect badly on him if he failed to turn up.

The maximum sentence for GBH with intent is life in jail.

The court heard Ms Burgess spent more than three months in intensive care and is still undergoing rehabilitation at a specialist spinal injuries unit.

‘She is in constant pain,’ Ms Magill said. ‘She describes it as being as if she is in a suit of armour that is two sizes too small.

‘She can lift her arms using her shoulders but she cannot move her fingers.

‘She requires help to drink, she cannot perform simple everyday bodily functions such as coughing, she requires healthcare professionals to assist her.

‘However, cognitively, in her mind, there is no impairment. She is as articulate and sound of mind as she was prior to this happening.’

Prior to becoming a teacher, Ms Burgess was a talented singer, who sang under the stage name Trudi Hide. She performed at renowned London jazz club, Ronnie Scott’s, and also featured on BBC Radio One. 

She has also recently become a grandmother. 

Ms Burgess’ two children, Gina and Jackson, are now fundraising via an online  GoFundMe page for her ongoing care.

‘Our mum is a special lady: warm, gentle, intelligent, and endlessly creative,’ Jackson said.

‘The last 10 months have been hellish. Mum spent three months in ICU on a ventilator, unable to breathe on her own, speak, or move. 

‘She was later transferred to the specialist spinal injuries unit, where she’s now spent seven months receiving round-the-clock care and working towards whatever independence she can regain. 

‘Mum’s needs going forward are a little overwhelming – which is why we’re (regrettably) asking for help. 

‘We’re hugely grateful that we still have our mum. We just want to make the rest of her life as comfortable, safe, and connected as possible.’