I hadn't considered it before either but let's say he decided to kill her and make it look like an accident. He's not going to get away with it if it's an outright obvious murder such as a stabbing. Let's say the other two occasions were 'failed accidents', Because every time he injured Ellie he stood the risk of her telling someone at school. He may have issued all kinds of threats - you'll never see Mummy or sister or granma/gramps again if you tell anyone - but he would never really know what she might say if encouraged to talk by trained supportive school staff/SS. So his chances of getting away with it a third time so soon after the last, were almost non existent - people aren't going to believe this falling over and looking battered story forever.
So this time it has to be such a bad accident, such a hard 'fall' (right onto her head not her feet or knees or side) that she can't recover. I don't know if he could have pre-planned it better than that. Anything less serious and she might have survived to tell the tale. I just don't see how he can smash her head so hard to break her skull without thinking 'how will I ever get away with this if she survives?'.
Yep, I'm thinking now it was deliberate. Call JG tell her Ellie's had an accident, you can't call an ambulance because they won't believe us and we will lose other daughter. So come home and pretend with me that we were just having a delightful afternoon with tea and cake...
Every time he hurt Ellie JG never said a word to anyone, just as she didn't when he hurt her, because she knows the truth and is culpable for not protecting her children from him.
We've seen her lie to the police 'Ben has never hurt me'. She must have thought they had no proof! She never saw them going through the communal rubbish bins and emptying the washing machine, see what she had been wearing that day on cctv as she left work, and didn't know they could recover deleted texts.
As for his spray of aftershave, I'm wondering if he was breathalised.
Starting from bottom I think your aftershave to mask alcohol point has potential. That's a better reason to spray it than just vanity. Had he been drinking day time. ( Indeed are a lot of those texts fuelled by drink - some of them are so garbled they look "drunk". Does alc facilitate his rage? Would love to know if he was tested as standard procedure. IDK how late on 28th he was arrested and whether it could have gone from his system if a breath test is indeed standard on arrest at the station. Presume it is?
On your other big point.
It is possible , it was pre -med.
Are you thinking :
JG would not have known he was planning to do this and was at work, when he told her to come home at 1.46 she wasn't aware he had killed her.
JG would never tell so he didn't need to worry about her anyway.
Ellie was the prime witness to circa 11 months of abuse. If she was gone she couldn't reveal any of that abuse ( not incl the fatal injury of course) . He was worried she may reveal this due to an upcoming meet with gparents plus perhaps increasing pressure from social services who are persistently trying to set up a meet ( perhaps after convos with the school.)
So he hit her once then decided to finish it - you mean? Or before the first strike he decided to shut her down basically.
It is possible - Ellie may have said sthg about wanting to tell Gramps, or crying that she wanted to go back run away to Grandma etc etc and that sparked the fatal attack. I think that Ellie would have said that at some stage - it's just natural and to her those gps were her parents really.
BUT
Why didn't he cleanse the flat before the 28th though if it was totally premed? ( as opposed to rush around binning stuff the same afternoon)
Again apols for being graphic but would it not have been better to stage/claim a fall downstairs or even do that to Ellie. That would be better than a staged overturned chair.
Or, OTOH , it IS premed , (but not premed in layman's terms). ie. he can decide up to say, a few minutes before he strikes, before he carries out the act to shut her up once & for all. I do think it is very possible. Imagine a scenario where Ellie says, grandpa always told me that I should tell the truth etc etc and that decided it for BB.??
As you can see i haven't fully thought your scenario through yet but I do believe people in rage can be fully aware, fully in control, it's not all "red mist". I think even that topic is interesting in itself, in general and in relation to him as I have always thought he can exhibit self- control, as you will have read.
