The woman charged with the murder of her elderly mother has been committed for trial at Sydney Supreme Court.
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Barbara Mary Eckersley, 68, of Bundanoon, appeared in Goulburn Local Court on Wednesday, April 15.
She is accused of murdering her 92-year-old mother, Dr Mary White, at a nursing home in the village on August 5, 2018.
Dr White was a former resident of Port Macquarie-Hastings.
Last year, police told the court that on Sunday, August 5, about 9.35pm, they were called to the aged care facility where Dr White had been found deceased. She was a resident of the complex.
Dr White had vascular dementia and was unable to speak or recognise her family, the court has previously heard. Her family believed she was often in pain and discomfort, a fact disputed by the nursing home.
Dr White was a formidable figure in the world of paleobotany and conservation in Australia and worked at the Bureau of Mineral Resources in Canberra until the 1980s.
The 80ha property named Falls Forest Retreat, largely nestled at the bottom of Middle Brother Mountain, has forests full of "interesting plants and animals".
There is a covenant to protect the bushland as part of Dr White's commitment to the environment.
Dr White was named a Member (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia for service to botany as a researcher and through the promotion of increased understanding and awareness of the natural world.
In court on April 15, Eckersley was supported by her husband and represented by lawyer Adrian McKenna. She was dressed smartly in a beige suit.
Magistrate Geraldine Beattie told Eckersley she was being committed for trial for the charge of murder, more than a year-and-a-half on from the alleged murder
The next trial date at Sydney Supreme Court is on June 5.
Eckersley has not entered a plea.
She has been granted bail throughout her court proceedings based on the lengthy period it would likely take for the case to go to trial.
Eckersley was also cooperative with police when arrested and has no previous criminal history.
The bail condition is that Eckersley remains in Bundanoon but does not approach prosecution witnesses or the Warrigal Aged Care facility where her mother was a resident.
She will remain on bail until her appearance in the Supreme Court.
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