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Man denies murdering sick father in hospital bed
21.08.09
A post office worker today denied murdering his seriously ill father in his hospital bed.
Ralph Stephenson, 45, is accused of asphyxiating Ralph Stephenson, 86, at the University Hospital of North Durham on June 11.
Stephenson, who was flanked by two dock officers, spoke only to enter his not guilty plea during a short hearing at Newcastle Crown Court.
The defendant, of Tyne Road East, Stanley, County Durham, was remanded in custody to face trial starting on January 25 next year before a High Court judge.
Mr Stephenson senior, of Hazel Terrace, The Middles, near Stanley, suffered from Parkinson's disease.
He had been admitted to the hospital three weeks earlier and was in poor health.
