Valdo Calocane, 32, has been sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court to a restricted hospital order – indefinite detention in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 having pleaded guilty to three charges of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility (DR) and three charges of attempted murder following a series of attacks in the city on 13th June 2023.
The judge stated detention in a high security hospital will be “very probably, for the rest of your life”.
You can read the judge’s full sentencing remarks for yourself and they are extremely clear in explaining how various decisions have been reached in this absolutely awful, terrible case.
- Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Ian Coates were killed that morning – and I can only hope their families find a way to cope and live with this, it’s as bad as it gets.
- Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski were attacked with a vehicle stolen from Mr Coates and they suffered very serious injuries – I can only hope for their recovery, both physical and mental.
I don’t think I’ve known a sentencing hearing like the one which has played out in Nottingham over the last three days. My posts from day one and day two are available if you want more detail of how it unfolded each day.
It involved a detailed chronology of Mr Calocane’s history, psychiatric evidence, victim personal statements from those affected and evidence from the police that “more could have been done”. Notwithstanding that criminal sentencing amounts to the closure of this legal process, it is not closure of all legal process – in due course, there will be inquests in to victims’ deaths which will be even more likely to scrutinise the health care received by the defendant and the police involvement at various points in his mental health care and after allegations of offending. It wouldn’t surprise me if there was civil legal action, also given the argument about failures and unanswered questions.
There is still a long way to go, unfortunately for those living with and affected by this and I’ve been in tears watching this morning not least because I’m a University of Nottingham parent and I can’t hear of this utter awfulness without thinking of my own son, walking up the Ilkeston Road near to where he lives.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
A restricted hospital order means Mr Calocane will be returned to Ashworth High Secure hospital where it emerges he’s been since November 2023. He will be detained indefinitely under the MHA, until such time as doctors in charge of his care and the Secretary of State for Justice believe discharge is appropriate. Be really clear about this: that day will most likely never come – the judge said it will involve detention under the MHA “very probably for the rest of your life” and doctors in the psychiatric evidence said the same thing.
Media and social media coverage has asked the question why this is manslaughter, not murder? – the answer to that question is in the judge’s sentencing remarks which I do encourage people to read. We may take a view the law should be different or even that it should be changed, but having been interested in these topics for over twenty years, the judge’s explanation of this made sense to me as the law stands. But no doubt at all: I can see why it doesn’t appear to make sense, given the prosecution admissions of planning, preparation and pre-meditation in these attacks, in addition to their noted ferocity.
Equally, I can see why the judge opted for the restricted hospital order as a disposal. Again, for reasons he set out in the sentencing remarks, it makes more overall sense than any of the other options he had available to him – and by that I mean makes more sense for the public and its broader protection from now onwards and that’s primarily what I’m most interested in, given where we are now. What’s the best thing to do from here – given the court heard psychiatric evidence that Mr Calocane remains dangerous and that his condition is resistant to treatment?
BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS
But how we got here isn’t irrelevant – and I also have one or two hundred questions.
It’s just something we can’t do anything about in terms of the judge deciding how to sentence but the unfolding of this tragedy is far from over and no doubt there will be a lot of examination to come of how we got here. There will be an inquest process which will examine in much more detail than a criminal trial how we got to where we are. In addition, there will no doubt be reviews or inquiries about the agency contacts and handling of all this.
In the immediate aftermath of sentencing, remarks have been broadcast from all three families of those who died. In particular, however, I’d like to highlight what was said by Emma Webber, Barney’s mother – and they were understandably excoriating remarks and important questions. She pointed out, contrary to claims made, that her family were not consulted about the proposed acceptance of pleas to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility and had questions about why Mr Calocane was not assessed regarding his mental health in custody – I presume she means assessed in police custody, but can’t be certain.
And she had specific comment for Nottinghamshire Police —
“We have additionally gave grave concerns. Why were we repeatedly told through the summer that the offender was a sofa-surfer and had no real abode? Not true – he did. One that was registered in his name, in Nottingham, and he had been in for six months prior to his eviction on only the 11th June last year. Why?
It took repeated questioning from us, to finally receive an answer late last Friday afternoon to the question of his outstanding warrant issued September 2022 for a vicious attack on police officer. Such a violent assault, that he was tasered.
To the Assistant Chief Constable, Rob Griffin, who finally released this information publicly yesterday, I say this: you have blood on your hands. If you had just done your job properly, there is a very good chance my beautiful boy would be alive today. There is so much more to say and clearly serious questions regarding this case and events leading up to this monster being out in society.
But for today, our darling son, his dear friend Grace and a wonderfully kind grandfather Ian have been stolen from us forever and let down by the very systems that should have been protecting them.”
One part of the process over — I can only wish well everyone affected by this utter heartbreak as they prepare for the next part and I admit to wondering about many of the issues that have been raised during the sentencing process over the last three days.
NB: this is the latest in post about the terrible events in Nottingham, June 2023. You can find all the others collated on a specific Nottingham resources page along with other materials, inc reports and legal documents.
Winner of the President’s Medal, the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Winner of the Mind Digital Media Award
All opinions expressed are my own – they do not represent the views of any organisation. (c) Michael Brown, 2024
I try to keep this blog up to date, but inevitably over time, amendments to the law as well as court rulings and other findings from inquests and complaints processes mean it is difficult to ensure all the articles and pages remain current. Please ensure you check all legal issues in particular and take appropriate professional advice where necessary.
Government legislation website – www.legislation.gov.uk
Mental Health Cop 