Hampshire jeweller killed wife before taking his own life during psychotic episode
An inquest has been held in Portsmouth
A coroner has ruled a Hampshire jeweller suffered a "psychotic episode" after not taking his medication, when he killed his wife before taking his own life.
The bodies of Christopher Stone-Houghton, 66, and Ruth Stone-Houghton, 60, were found at their home in Holcot Lane, Portsmouth, Hampshire, on September 14 2022.
A post-mortem examination found the cause of death of Mrs Stone-Houghton was a head injury.
The Portsmouth inquest heard that Mr Stone-Houghton had suffered a rapid deterioration in his mental health in April 2022, after he had been forced to close down his jewellery business after it had struggled through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Coroner Rachel Spearing said that family and friends became increasingly concerned for him in April and May of that year, because of his "anxious and manic" behaviour, and he was then sectioned in June 2022 after he "violently" self-harmed.
She said that she found his discharge in August was "unsafe due to an inadequate risk assessment concerning the care plan" put in place, but said she did not find this to be "causative or contributory" to the deaths.
Ms Spearing said that in the weeks before the couple's deaths, Mr Stone-Houghton had shown signs of improvements and "no physical manifestations of anxiety".
She said: "All indicators were that he was making a positive recovery, complying via a routine with medications, denying any suicidal thoughts with hope, positive interactions with friends and future planning.
"There was never any expressed indication or history of genuine concern for his harming Ruth."
But the coroner said that toxicology tests carried out as part of the post-mortem examination showed that he had not been taking his medication.
She said: "I accept the evidence of all three consultant psychiatrists that on the balance of probabilities is it likely that Chris experienced a further psychotic episode earlier that morning resulting in his actions towards Ruth which ended her life."
Recording a narrative verdict stating that Mrs Stone-Houghton died from head injuries caused by her husband while he suffered a "psychotic episode", she added: "There was no history or any indication of any risk of violence during their loving and happy 32-year relationship."
Describing the couple, she added: "Ruth and Christopher Stone-Houghton were described as 'a fun, loving couple who did everything together and adored their children, whom they were very close to'.
"'Both were loyal friends who were always helping others, and the events of last September were described as 'a complete shock to us all'."
The inquest also heard that Mr Stone-Houghton held a gun licence for three rifles and a pistol, which he used at a gun club, but he had handed this over to a registered firearms dealer in June 2022.
The coroner said that the police had contacted his GP after a concern was raised about his ownership of firearms, but the doctor had not replied because Mr Stone-Houghton had told his doctor that he no longer had need of the licence.
Ms Spearing said she found it "concerning" that there was no mandatory requirement for a GP to notify police of their concerns but added it had not contributed to the two deaths.
In a separate inquest into Mr Stone-Houghton's death, Ms Spearing recorded a narrative conclusion that he had "ended his life" while suffering a "psychotic episode".
Speaking ahead of the inquest, the couple's children, Oliver, 30, and Abbie, 28, said: "We couldn't have wished for better parents. We were the centre of their world, and they were everything we ever needed.
"Both our parents lost their lives to poor mental health, which we believe was entirely avoidable had dad's condition been managed better."
They said that a multi-agency homicide and suicide overview report later found that their father's mental illness was severe but treatable and that the "tragedy could have been avoided with better care".
They explained that five days before the deaths, a planned visit was cancelled by the home treatment team and that their father was told he was ineligible for its early intervention for psychosis service because he had turned 66, meaning he was classed as an "elderly" patient.
They said: "We thought that once dad was finally in the system, he'd be OK. But ultimately, we learnt that you know your loved one best and you need to fight for them every step of the way.
"For all the amazing work that so many dedicated and talented professionals do every day, there is so much wrong with a broken system which is struggling to cope."
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