They had a seemingly happy relationship for over 20 years - then he killed her in a brutal hammer attack
15.11.2023 - 18:39
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A man killed his partner of 20 years in a brutal hammer attack after being overcome with an ‘irresistible impulse’ due to a rare mental health disorder. Daniel Mitchell, 48, was suffering with a severe catatonic depression never seen before by a senior psychiatrist, when he repeatedly struck Alexis Karran with a hammer.
The 49-year-old radiographer, from Dukinfield, sadly died as a result of her injuries. The couple had been in a seemingly happy relationship for years, but his deteriorating mental health led him to commit the unlawful killing.
Twenty minutes after attacking Alexis at their home on Winchester Road, Mitchell called the police and said he had ‘just killed his partner’. He later told consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Melanie Higgins: “The night before I don’t recall, but I didn’t have much sleep. I woke up, we were planning a Sunday dinner and friends were coming round.
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“I started the day with trying to put some pictures up, however the task felt like the biggest chore in the world. I just picked up [the hammer] and hit her with it, I don’t know why. I don’t know why but I went on hitting her until I thought she was dead."
He later said that once he started he was ‘unable to stop’, describing it like an ‘out of body experience’. “I must be some sort of monster to do this to any person,” he added, describing Alexis as his ‘soul mate and best friend’.
Mitchell pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, and was handed a hospital order with restrictions. This means he will remain in a high