Double murder inquest to examine care before deaths

The sisters of a man who stabbed his parents to death during a psychotic episode say they want an inquest to examine whether their brother's treatment "fell into a gap".

James Andrews, known to his family as Duncan, killed Mary, 76, and Bryan Andrews, 79, at their home in Terrey Road, Totley, in Sheffield, in November 2022.

He was given an indefinite hospital order in July 2023 after he admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

At a pre-inquest review, Ruth Costello, on behalf of Andrews' sisters, Lucy and Sally, said the family had concerns around their brother's mental healthcare prior to the attack.

Ms Costello told the hearing: "The family feel Duncan fell into a gap in terms of the treatment and service he was receiving".

During a sentencing, Sheffield Crown Court heard Andrews attacked his parents with a German bayonet during a psychotic episode, stabbing his mother 82 times and leaving his father with multiple injuries.

Senior Coroner Mrs Tanyka Rawden said the inquest into their deaths - due to take place on 2 and 3 October - would look at the treatment and diagnosis of their son before they died, with particular reference to any mental health conditions from November 2020.

She said it would explore if there was "any link between the epilepsy and/or epilepsy medication and the deterioration in the mental health of James Duncan Andrews in so far as it relates to the death of his parents".

Mrs Rawden said she the inquest would also look why no consultant psychiatrist was allocated to Andrews' care and how information was shared between healthcare professionals, with the inquest set to hear from those involved in his care.

At court in July 2023, Sally Andrews said her brother had waited for more than two years to get mental health support.

In a victim impact statement read out at the time she said: "My parents sacrificed their lives so he could get a diagnosis of a 'serious mental illness' - something we had been trying to get [healthcare professionals] to acknowledge for some time."

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