Kiahna Trott-Edwards was jailed yesterday for 5½ years for the manslaughter of 16-year-old Shijuan Mungal.

The mother of three — who killed Shijuan when she hit him on the head with a baseball bat during a confrontation outside her home — had admitted the offence earlier this month. Passing sentence, Puisne Judge Carlisle Greaves said he hoped Trott-Edwards had learnt from the experience, saying: “We often must learn to take a deep breath as soon as that first pang of anger rises towards your head.

“It can save us.”

Trott-Edwards’s confrontation with Shijuan came in September 2014, shortly after they had been involved in an altercation on a bus.

The court heard that during the bus ride Trott-Edwards told off Shijuan for swearing loudly, causing a brief exchange of harsh words.

Trott-Edwards and her daughter got off the bus. However, Shijuan was travelling with a friend who lived in the same area as the defendant and they saw each other again outside her home.

In the ensuing confrontation, she struck him twice with a baseball bat: once on the arm and once on the back of the head, which fractured his skull. He died in hospital three days later.

In December 2015, Trott-Edwards was jailed for life, after a jury found her guilty of murder.

However, last August, the Court of Appeal pointed to “regrettable errors” during her trial before quashing her conviction and sentence and releasing her on bail pending a retrial.

Appearing in court earlier this month, Trott-Edwards admitted the manslaughter of Shijuan.

During a sentencing hearing yesterday, prosecutor Nicole Smith said the defendant had taken the law into her own hands, adding that any threat perceived by her was “unjustified and contrived”.

Charles Richardson, representing Trott-Edwards, said his client accepted responsibility for her actions and was very remorseful.

He told the court that she swung the bat for a second time because she believed she was going to be attacked, and had aimed for the victim’s arm.

While the Crown called for a sentence of six years, Mr Richardson argued 5½ years would be more appropriate.

Trott-Edwards declined an opportunity to address the court.

Mr Justice Greaves said such cases were difficult to sentence, noting that while the victim had behaved “unfortunately”, the actions of the defendant were “way excessive”.

And he noted the difficulty in sentencing cases in which a defendant pleads guilty, saying that some may feel that a far greater sentence would be justifiable.

However, he said based on the circumstances and precedents, a sentence of 5½ years in prison was appropriate, ordering that Trott-Edwards’ time already spent in custody be taken into account.

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