Son detained for killing mother

A son who killed his mother by stabbing her 16 times has been detained in a mental health unit for an indefinite time.

Graham West, 24, has never explained what provoked him to make the sustained attack at the family home in Longville, Wolverton, Milton Keynes, and then turn the knife on himself.

West was highly educated but had struggled to get a job, which affected him mentally, Luton Crown Court was told on Wednesday.

His mother, Rena, 53, had been widowed just two years before when her husband Victor, a college lecturer, had a heart attack.

This order is necessary to protect both the family and the public from serious harm which you could cause them Mr Justice Anthony Hooper Luton Crown Court

West pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

Nicholas Browne QC, prosecuting, said four psychiatrists were in agreement that at the time of the killing that West was suffering from schizophrenia.

West, who was left critically ill after stabbing himself, had earlier attacked his mother on 19 December last year.

Mrs West underwent surgery, but she died the same day.

Mr Justice Hooper ordered that West be placed in hospital.

He said: "What you did that morning has torn your family apart.

"This order is necessary to protect both the family and the public from serious harm which you could cause them."