A man has been detained indefinitely in a psychiatric hospital after he pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of his parents by reason of diminished responsibility.
William Warrington, 42, admitted killing his mother Valerie Warrington, 73, and his father Clive Warrington, 67, on 2 March this year.
He appeared at Bristol Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday) where it was heard that Warrington had a long history of mental illness and had a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia and psychosis.
Warrington, of St George’s Street, Cheltenham, had left a mental health hospital in Gloucester on the evening of 1 March and travelled in the direction of Bourton-on-the-Water in the Cotswolds via a taxi.
Warrington then broke into his mother’s home in Bourton-on-the-Water and killed her. He later used his mother’s car to drive to his father’s address in Cheltenham at around 6.15am and killed him.
Police responded to calls from neighbours and Warrington was arrested in the street.
There have been extensive psychiatric examinations and it was found that Warrington had delusional beliefs and ideas. He suggested that he had been instructed to carry out the killings.
Mrs Justice Eady ordered Warrington be detained in a secure psychiatric hospital indefinitely under Section 37 of the Mental Health Act, with a Section 41 restriction order. The restriction means that, in order to protect the public from serious harm, any decision about his future release is made by the Secretary of State.
Following the hearing, DCI Wayne Usher from the Major Crime Investigation Team, said: “The deaths of Clive and Valerie Warrington at the hands of their son is an extremely tragic case.
“The awful and distressing events which unfolded that evening and the following morning are heartrending, and our thoughts remain with the family, who are understandably devastated by this tragedy and have asked for privacy.
“I welcome today’s sentencing which means William Warrington will be in a high-security hospital receiving the appropriate support and where he will no longer be a threat to the wider public.”
