Emma Jane Williams, 41, from Pype Hayes, Erdington, has admitted tampering with a boy's medication but denied any intention to cause him serious harm. She told Birmingham Crown Court that she thought the boy would only get an 'iffy stomach' and need to go to the toilet. Williams accepted that a camera showed her using a syringe to add a substance to the medication, and that she had made Google searches including one for the 'worst thing you could mix' with the youngster's medicine.
Court Admissions and Denials
Williams told jurors she had fed officers a 'pack of lies' during police interviews after her arrest because she was frightened. Prosecutors allege she attempted to kill the youngster, who cannot be identified due to a court order, but was caught by the recording in January 2026. Williams, who has been in custody at HMP Foston Hall in Derbyshire since her arrest, acknowledged tampering with the boy's medication.
She said: 'I thought he might get…an iffy tummy and need to go to the toilet. I did not intend to cause him any serious harm. When I watch the video back I kind of don’t recognise the person.'
Defence and Mental Health Context
The court heard that Williams was on benefits and had post-traumatic stress disorder related to health problems. She claimed she was 'in crisis and crying out for help' at the time of the alleged murder bid. Defence barrister Lewis Power KC asked Williams: 'Did you have any intention of causing him any permanent harm?' Williams responded: 'No, definitely not.' She added: 'I just thought it was a funny tummy – it would clear through.'
Agreeing with Mr Power’s description of her actions as 'wicked', Williams added: 'That’s why I am here now, because I want to put things right.' She said she had lied to police, even when confronted with video evidence, because she was frightened. Asked by Mr Power if she was lying to the jurors, she told them: 'No. I am telling the truth. I am Catholic now since going to prison. As God is my witness I am not lying.'
Prosecution Allegations
The Crown alleges that Williams 'was plotting the demise' of the boy and used her mobile phone to search for the effects of specific liquids on certain types of medicine before interfering with medication on a number of occasions. Under cross-examination from prosecutor Timothy Harrington, Williams asserted that she had 'owned up' and that what had happened during the recording was 'all a blur'. The trial continues.
