Mum's killing of children unpredictable - inquest

Elizabeth and Ethan John were killed at their home in June 2023

Two children who were stabbed to death by their mother were unlawfully killed in an attack that was "completely unpredictable", an inquest has concluded.

Ethan John, 11, and his sister Elizabeth, seven, were stabbed by their mother Veronique John at their home on Flax Street, Stoke-on-Trent, on 11 June 2023.

Mrs John was handed an indefinite hospital order in July 2024 and was subjected to a trial of the facts after she was found unfit to enter a plea.

The three-day inquest into the children's deaths, attended by their father Nathan John, concluded at The Civic Centre in Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday, having heard of Mrs John's medical history prior to the attack.

The inquest was told that police were contacted by Mr John on 9 June 2023, reporting he had been assaulted and threatened by his wife.

Mrs John was arrested the next day and admitted slapping her husband but denied making any threats to kill him.

The inquest was told the incident was dealt with through a community resolution notice and she was allowed to return home in the early hours of 11 June.

Later that day, she stabbed Ethan 21 times and Elizabeth was also knifed, leaving her with a fatal brain injury.

She also went to her husband's workplace and stabbed him, telling him she had killed the children. Mrs John called police to tell them what she had done at about 14:00 BST.

Veronique John was handed an indefinite hospital order in July 2024

The inquest heard a review carried out by Staffordshire Police's professional standards department found service levels in some aspects of the force's interaction with the family had been "inadequate".

The hearing was told Mr John should have been seen within two hours of reporting the assault by his wife on 9 June but officers did not visit him at his workplace until the following day.

According to police guidelines, a community resolution notice - the means by which Mrs John was permitted to return home - should not have been issued in a domestic violence case involving people who had been in an intimate relationship.

Insp Bruce Wilkinson told the inquest he later realised he applied the notice "in error", but at no time thought there would be a physical risk to the children if Mrs John returned to the property.

A psychiatrist informed the coroner that Mrs John had not met the threshold of insanity at the time she was in custody.

A picture of Mrs John's mental health challenges would emerge in the months following the custody assessment and killings, when she was diagnosed, the inquest heard, with complex post-traumatic stress disorder and a personality disorder.

According to the proceedings, medical records showed she had previously been prescribed antidepressants, and from 2012 had experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth, her mother's death and domestic abuse from a former partner in the Caribbean.

She was referred to a psychiatrist seven years before the children's deaths and had previously tried to end her life.

'Unlawful killing'

Giving a conclusion of unlawful killing, coroner Emma Serrano accepted the community resolution notice should not have been used but said the outcome would likely not have been any different.

"I am satisfied police are in the process of putting in place things that will reduce the risk of this happening in the future," she added. "[The attack] was completely unpredictable."

Mr John paid tribute to his children at the hearing, highlighting Ethan's friendly nature and Elizabeth's "bright and bubbly" personality.

He said Ethan had a smile which would "warm your heart", and had started to "blossom" at school, wining a mathematician of the year certificate.

Elizabeth was treated like a princess, loved unicorns and was "obsessed" with the movie Frozen, Mr John said.

He said nobody could have foreseen what his wife was going to do, adding: "I do not feel that anyone is to blame other than Veronique.

"I am happy the police have identified issues with the case and they have implemented learning so no other family will hopefully go through what I have."

Speaking after the hearing, Det Ch Supt Sally Blaiklock said the children's deaths were "truly devastating" and the thoughts of the force remained with the family.

"We will always strive to make significant progress in improving how we investigate and support all victims and children in domestic abuse cases," she added.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations.