Brighton, UK; civil partner, 71, unfit to plead in samurai sword killing of Andrew Rowland-Stuart, 27 May 2024

[LenaOdenthal]

Brighton: Woman, 70, in court over husband's death

Emergency services were called to a flat where the victim was pronounced dead, police say.

www.bbc.com

Joanna Rowland-Stuart was charged with murder. The trial at Lewes Crown Court was told on Monday that Rowland-Stuart is unfit to plead.

The jury must therefore make a finding of fact on whether Rowland-Stuart unlawfully killed Andrew Rowland-Stuart.

Brighton wife killed husband with samurai sword, court told

Joanna Rowland-Stuart, who was ruled unfit to plead, is accused of her husband's unlawful killing.

www.bbc.com

 

[LenaOdenthal]

Brighton Woman Ruled Unfit To Face Trial Over Husband’s Death

This article contains a little more information on the circumstances leading to unfitness to face trial.

(...) medical assessments revealed she is unable to understand or participate in court proceedings.

The decision was made at Lewes Crown Court, where Judge Christine Laing KC accepted expert reports highlighting serious issues with Rowland-Stuart’s memory and mental capacity.

Also on the orders the court can impose following the trial of the facts.

 

[LenaOdenthal]

The trial has concluded. Joanna Rowland-Stuart did kill Andrew Rowland-Stuart with the samurai sword and is subject to a hospital order, meaning indefinite detention.

Samurai sword killer to be detained indefinitely

The transgender woman who killed her husband with a samurai sword has been ordered to be detained indefinitely under the

www.brightonandhovenews.org

For anyone who is interested in the relatively rare ruling on unfitness to face trial, and the conditions for someone detained on a hospital order, there is a very informative reader comment at the bottom of the article linked.

I was interested in the difference between diminished responsibility, which relates to the perpetrator's state at the time of the crime, versus unfitness to stand trial (now, a year on from the events).

JRS made some somewhat lucid-sounding statements at the time of arrest, telling the police it was self defence, and that Andrew RS initiated an attack on JRS with the sword. On the other hand, JRS had made numerous internet searches for terms including swords in the weeks before.

I'm of course not commenting on whether that could have been true, or not - just that JRS at least seemed to be able to comprehend the charges and allegations at that point in time, and provided an "explanation" which didn't involve diminished responsibility. But of course, one's mental state could go completely downhill after such an event.