- Marc Carter, 46, killed father-of-two Gino Nelmes, 32, at care home in Bristol
- Believed he was 'reading his thoughts and repeating them'
- Carter had history of violent offending going back 20 years
- Had been released to 'halfway house' which was unsupervised at the time
- Mental health services have launched an investigation into the case
By Steve Robson
|
A paranoid schizophrenic with a history of 'extreme violence' killed an innocent man after stabbing him 17 times with a Samurai sword because he thought the victim was 'reading his thoughts'.
Marc Carter, 46, had been placed in a care home on 'trial release' from a secure hospital in Horfield, Bristol, last year when the unprovoked attack took place.
He had been drinking cider before he stabbed fellow resident Gino Nelmes, 32, because he believed the father-of-two was 'reading his mind and repeating his thoughts'.
Horror attack: Paranoid schizophrenic Marc Carter, left, stabbed victim Gino Nelmes, right, 17 times with a Samurai sword after being allowed out of a secure hospital on 'trial release'
The ornamental weapon, which Carter had been keeping in his bedroom, pierced Mr Nelmes' heart, liver and spleen and he died from massive blood loss.
By the time emergency services arrived Carter had already walked to a nearby police station and handed himself in saying 'I've just stabbed somebody with a knife'.
Bristol Crown Court heard how Carter had a history of violent offences stretching back more than 20 years including assaulting a police officer.
But despite his record, mental health bosses had released him from Fromeside secure hospital days earlier to live in a 'halfway house' which was attended by carers during the week, but not at the weekend when Mr Nelmes was killed.
The Recorder of Bristol Judge Neil Ford QC ordered Carter be detained at Broadmoor hospital indefinitely, serving a minimum of 12 years before he can be considered for release, after he admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
Locked up: Marc Carter has been ordered to serve at least 12 years at Broadmoor secure hospital, pictured, before he is considered for release
He will not be released from custody without approval from the Secretary of State or a tribunal.
'In my judgement you are particularly dangerous because it can appear to professionals that your mental health is such that you can live in the community, whereas, as this tragic case demonstrates, your behaviour is unpredictable.
'I am wholly satisfied that you are a significant risk to the public of serious harm' said the judge.
'Gino had only been there for two weeks before Carter took my son away. He could have lived a long, happy life, with his two children, and he will never see them again.'
Speaking outside court, Mr Nelmes' mother Rosa Hahn slammed mental health services for allowing Carter into the care home.
She said: 'We didn't know Carter was in there with Gino. Gino had been living there happily for eight years before Carter came.
'He had only been there for two weeks before he took my son away. Gino could have lived a long, happy life, with his two children, and he will never see them again.
'I blame the doctors for releasing Carter. What was in their minds to say that this man could walk the streets and be in the community with people?
'I think it was also neglect by the place where Gino was, they didn't do their job. There should have been someone there.
'They must have known what kind of a person Carter is, they should have had staff there.'
The judge said the latest psychiatric report on Carter found he was capable of 'extreme violence' towards other people at unpredictable intervals but had not been noted to be suffering any relapse before the killing.
Carter's barrister, Paul Grumbar, told the court he did not think anyone was to blame for what happened.
'No science is perfect and no professional service can cover all eventualities, particularly when dealing with such a complicated person as Mr Carter,' he said.
History of violence: Bristol Crown Court heard that Marc Carter had a record of violent offences stretching back more than 20 years
Speaking after the case, the victim's adoptive parents, Tony and Cheryl Nelmes, said: 'Gino was a loving, caring person whose smile was infectious.
'He had gone through a tough period in his life which we know now was due to mental health problems. Once these were diagnosed and he was given appropriate care and treatment, he was able to turn his life around.
'In recent years, Gino was the happiest that we have ever seen him. He had a loving family that he adored - he also had a partner and two young children that he absolutely doted on.
'For us, the pain of losing Gino has at times been unbearable. Thoughts of his last moments constantly fill our minds. There have been times when we have struggled to cope and wondered how we would ever get through this terrible time.'
Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership, which runs Fromeside hospital, have launched an investigation into the case.
A spokesman said: 'Decisions about the care and support provided to service users are always informed by the best clinical understanding of individual needs.
'We shall of course work closely with the independent investigation being commissioned by the strategic health authority designed to identify any lessons which can be learned from this tragic event.'
Another innocent dies. Another stream of platitudes from the "experts". "Decisions about the care and support provided to service users are always informed by the best clinical understanding of individual needs We shall of course work closely with the independent investigation being commissioned by the strategic health authority designed to identify any lessons which can be learned from this tragic event." So - just how many times have the same platitudes been used by the experts in response to EXACTLY this situation -involving a person who has EXACTLY the same illness - over the last 10 years? Too many times. But these individuals don't live next door to the "experts", do they? WHY didn't Gino's RIGHT TO LIFE take precedence over an experts wish to "trial" a dangerously unpredictable persons' "ability" to live in a community? What gives them the right to play russian roulette with MY life? Something to do with their ability to retire to the 'burbs - far from the "hostels"?
- unsurprised , wilts, 02/2/2013 09:27
Report abuse