Britons murdered by released dangerous mental health patients | UK | News

At least 30 dangerous mental health patients discharged from high-security hospitals were later implicated in murder, a Telegraph investigation has found.

The findings raise serious concerns about the system used to detain and release violent criminals deemed too mentally disturbed to serve prison time.

Around 250 offenders each year are sent to secure institutions such as Broadmoor, Rampton and Ashworth after judges decide they are unfit to go to prison.

In many cases, including that of Nottingham murderer Valdo Calocane, criminals are told their mental state is so severe that they can never be released.

The majority were released within a few years

But figures obtained by The Telegraph show that 55 per cent of those placed in secure hospitals were discharged within five years, rising to almost 90 per cent within ten years and 99 per cent within 20 years.

Data covering the period from 1993 to 2019 show that 30 patients released from high-security mental health units later committed murder.

Each year, approximately 500 patients are released from high- or medium-security mental health facilities, a process conducted under limited public supervision.

Patients who show signs of improvement while in custody may apply for consideration of release.

Their cases are reviewed by an independent mental health tribunal, which usually consists of three members: a judge, a psychiatrist and a mental health professional.

Closed trials and serious crimes

Unlike parole hearings, court hearings are held entirely in private and there is no access for the public or media. Victim families are also excluded.

Some of those released were convicted of the most serious crimes, including murder.

Concerns were also raised about the number of patients released who later breached conditions. About 300 people are recalled each year due to behavior concerns or rule violations.

Since 1993, at least 33 murders have been committed by people previously released from secure hospitals.

Among them was Lee Sowerby, who was twice given indefinite hospital orders and twice released before killing his mother in 2017.

Another case involved Theodore Johnson, who murdered his two wives, spent only two years in a secure hospital, and then murdered again.

Call for reform from victims’ families

Emma Webber, whose son Barnaby was killed along with Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Ian Coates in the Nottingham attacks in June 2023, has called for urgent changes to the court system.

Calocane admitted manslaughter due to diminished responsibility and was given an indefinite hospital order, with the court stating it was unlikely he would be released.

Ms Webber disputed this portrayal, arguing that the public was misled about the reality of the detention.

He said the claim that he would be imprisoned for life was “clearly and obviously untrue”.

He told The Telegraph: “I found it misleading that at the sentencing hearing it was presented to the public as ‘he’ll be here for the rest of his life so he’ll be off the streets’.

“I think the public would have been horrified if the judge, Mr. Justice Turner, had said, ‘You are going into the hospital system, which is essentially the care system, and you will not be released until you are deemed fit to be released. But that could be within five years, it could be in 10 years, it could be in 20 years, it could be indefinitely,’ I think the public would be horrified.”

Concerns about future release

Ms Webber warned Calocane could be released much sooner than many expected.

He said: “Valdo Calocane has gone to hospital and will probably leave the hospital because we know he is already responding to treatment. “This is a triple murderer who tried to kill three more people and could have done more.

“The people who will be allowed to decide whether my son’s killer will be released will be those in the professions who missed countless opportunities to treat him, manage him, deal with him and divide him.

“So how can there be any belief that they can be trusted to do their jobs properly when countless others have not done theirs?

“If we don’t make him the next Ian Brady and put him in the one percent who won’t be released, he could be out in 10 years.”

Victims and their families are allowed to give written statements but are not allowed to attend court hearings and are given minimal information following the release order.

Ms Webber said: “The opportunity to submit a victim impact statement is not worth the paper it is written on. “How do you go about measuring that impact?

“You are not allowed to participate in any discussions or evaluations. You are not allowed to be physically present. This is a piece of paper that is read on your behalf.”

Call for sentence change

The Webbers are also calling for greater use of hybrid sentences, which allow offenders to be transferred to prison once their mental health has stabilized.

Ms Webber said: “We as a group of families never argued that Calocane was seriously unwell. “Of course he was seriously unwell.

“But the element of diminished responsibility does not mean that responsibility has been eliminated; he is still a criminal and a very serious criminal.”

Julian Hendy, of the charity Hundred Families, said mental health courts operate like secret courts within the justice system.

He said: “I know that when seriously mentally ill people who kill others are given hospital orders, they are detained ‘indefinitely’ under the Mental Health Act. “An indefinite period actually sounds like a very long time, but often it is not.

“And many judges appear to be either ignorant or grossly misinformed about the actual length of detention of such criminals.

“I know from considerable experience that most hospital-ordered mentally ill murderers will often be released back into society within just five to 10 years.”