Latest news with #WestSussexCoroner'sCourt
Scottish Sun
18-07-2025
- Scottish Sun
Musician stabbed in the chest on street by mentally-ill girl, 14, who ‘slept with knife under her pillow', inquest hears
The teenager had stabbed her mother in the leg, tried to burn down her building and assaulted police officers in the months leading up to the fatal attack KNIFE TRAGEDY Musician stabbed in the chest on street by mentally-ill girl, 14, who 'slept with knife under her pillow', inquest hears A TALENTED musician died after being stabbed in his chest by a mentally-ill teenage girl who slept with a knife under her pillow, an inquest has heard. Nimroy Hendricks, 24, was chased down a street and fatally stabbed by the 14-year-old girl in West Sussex in 2020. He collapsed on the road and was later pronounced dead at the scene, despite the best efforts of paramedics to save his life. The teenager - who was known to be vulnerable and was on a Child Protection Plan - had been flagged as posing a "high risk", often "carrying a knife" around with her. Eight months before attacking Nimroy, the girl - who can only be identified as Child A because of court-imposed reporting restrictions - had stabbed her mother in the leg, tried to burn down her building and assaulted police officers. Frederick Powell, the barrister representing Nimroys' relatives, told West Sussex Coroner's Court that the teen had "been known to carry knives and on occasions slept with a knife under her pillow". Child A lived with her mum at the property in West Sussex, with the family having recently moved from Birmingham. Just four days before the fatal attack, Child A had gone missing from the home. Although police were able to find her, she was unable to return home as her mum was away in London. However, instead of placing her into protective custody, she was instead allowed to stay with a woman who claimed to be her "cousin". The woman was not a relative and was in-fact known to police as she had criminal convictions and was a known drug user. Coroner Penelope Schofield said cops had failed to verify whether the woman was a relative of the teenager - instead leaving Child A on the side of the road at 2am with a stranger. She said: 'The police did not physically attend the address given to them and therefore did not realise this person was not a relative.' Ms Schofield also said social services had failed to hold an emergency strategy meeting which had been organised when the child went missing. She said that as a result 'There was no opportunity to put in place additional safeguarding measures. It is possible that had these matters been addressed, the perpetrator may not have been in a position to carry out the act which led to Mr Hendrick's death.' The coroner also ruled that failings by Sussex Police and social services at West Sussex County Council may have contributed to the death of the 'peaceful and loving' musician. The inquest heard that Child A's mum had told an earlier investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct that she had been advised by social services to stay away. Mr Powell said "because the threat to him [Nimroy] was never properly assessed, he was never told he shouldn't go to the property". Nimroy, who was in a relationship with the girl's mum, had gone to the flat to collect work tools when he found the interior had been "annihilated", following an outburst by the teen. After finding the flat in disarray, he angrily banged on the girl's bedroom door. He then left the home and was making his way towards a nearby train station when the girl chased him down the street, confronting him. She then stabbed him once in the chest, telling a bystander: "I've stabbed Nim," as she calmly walked away. Child A - who had a long criminal record - was then arrested by police and later judged to be suffering form a "significant abnormality of mind". 'THE POLICE AND AUTHORITIES FAILED' Speaking after the inquest his parents Nimroy Hendricks Snr and Lisa Hendricks said their son had been failed but they were relieved by the coroner's findings. Lisa said: 'Nim should never have been put in the position he was. The authorities were well aware of the risk posed by the child.' She said the impact on the family had been shattered by his death and accused the police and social services of trying to cover up their errors. Mr Hendricks said: 'The police and authorities failed, they failed in every sense of the word.' The inquest in Horsham, West Sussex, heard the 14-year-old girl had a history of violence and suffered from mental health problems. She had been diagnosed with PTSD and a split personality disorder, had a criminal record and had previously attacked police. The hearing was told the girl had suffered a 'turbulent' childhood and had been the repeated victim of sexual assault, sex abuse and child sexual exploitation which had compounded her mental health condition. Mr Powell said Nim had never been told the risk of violence from the girl. He said: 'Nim was overlooked. He was never told of the risk this child posed. He was in a blindspot due to the failure of examining what was known.' Paying tribute to her son, his mum Lisa said Nim was a hugely loving child and man and a talented musician. She said: 'He was a leader and a performer. He loved books and reading. He was confident, happy and inquisitive. 'He was a joy to us. He loved the environment, the mountains and being close to the sea.'
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Yahoo
Nurse died after being hit by car, inquest hears
A nurse who was hit by a car while walking with her family died from injuries to her head and spine, an inquest has heard. Dominyka Jonikaite, 25, was struck by a grey BMW 3 Series in London Road, outside Crawley Leisure Park, on 12 April. She was walking with her 12-year-old sister and their cousin, a 19-year-old woman, who were both seriously injured, police previously said. Coroner Joseph Turner told West Sussex Coroner's Court on Thursday that Ms Jonikaite's death was "plainly violent", meaning he was required to open the inquest. The coroner then adjourned the inquest due to the ongoing police investigation. A post-mortem examination conducted by Dr Ashley Fegan-Earl found the provisional cause of death was craniocervical trauma, the inquest heard. Born in Lithuania, Ms Jonikaite had graduated with a degree in biomedical science from Bangor University and was working as a blood and transplant nurse, the inquest was told. A GoFundMe page, which has raised more than £16,000, was set up to help her family pay for the funeral and other financial burdens resulting from the crash. "This has left a devastating impact on the family who are struggling to come to terms with sudden loss and injuries to their baby girls," a family friend wrote on the fundraising page. The inquest is due to resume on 26 January 2026. Following the incident, a 33-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, and driving while unfit through drugs. He has since been released on bail. Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. Pedestrian who died in fatal Crawley crash named West Sussex Coroner's Court
The Independent
19-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Deaf TikTok star assessed as ‘high risk' of suicide two days before death
A deaf TikTok star who died after ingesting a poison she ordered online was assessed as being at 'high risk' of suicide two days before her death, an inquest has heard. Imogen Nunn took a poisonous substance and died in Brighton, East Sussex, on New Year's Day 2023. The 25-year-old, who was born deaf, raised awareness of hearing and mental health issues on her social media accounts, which attracted more than 780,000 followers. An inquest into her death heard on Wednesday that Ms Nunn had been described as being at 'high risk' of suicide following a meeting with her psychologist on December 30 2022, during which she expressed 'strong thoughts of killing herself by drinking poison'. Ms Nunn had then agreed to go to a mental health crisis facility to 'keep herself safe', and the psychologist passed this information on to the NHS mental health services responsible for her care, West Sussex Coroner's Court heard. But Ms Nunn's care co-ordinator Ray McCullagh, who then worked at Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, did not meet with her that day, and her admission never took place, the court heard. Referring to her death, Mr McCullagh told the court: 'It was tragic that that happened.' Turning to Ms Nunn's parents, Louise Sutherland and Ray Nunn, he added: 'I can't imagine what it was like for you guys. 'She was a really, really nice girl and over that period of time that I worked with her I felt that I had a good relationship with her.' Mr McCullagh said he attended a care package review with Ms Nunn on December 13 2022 – three weeks before her death – during which it was agreed at Ms Nunn's request that the support provided would be reduced. Mr McCullagh told Senior Coroner for West Sussex, Penelope Schofield: 'I think she found it quite intense, so the care package was reduced from five days a week to three.' On December 29, Ms Nunn sent Mr McCullagh a text message in which she said: 'I'm sorry to bother you. I'm simply having the worst few months and I think I need to be admitted to a ward with sign language.' The message added that she could 'no longer look after myself anymore. I'm losing the plot'. 'I don't know where I am and the places keep switching,' it continued. 'I've tried the second the resort and it didn't work and I know I can easily go into the last resort and I don't want to.' Mr McCullagh said he was unsure what Ms Nunn meant by 'second resort', but told the coroner he responded to her message immediately and arranged a visit at her home address on December 29. During that visit, Mr McCullagh noticed Ms Nunn was 'quite withdrawn' and made 'no eye contact', and had wounds on her forearm due to self-harm, the court heard. Ms Nunn agreed to go to A&E at Royal Sussex County Hospital with Mr McCullagh and her consultant psychiatrist at the Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust, Dr Simon Baker. Mr McCullagh said he stayed in A&E with Ms Nunn for about an hour and spoke to the hospital's mental health liaison team before he left. The inquest heard Ms Nunn was eventually left alone in the emergency room, and walked out of hospital before being seen by the mental health liaison team. The coroner asked Mr McCullagh: 'She wanted to go back to hospital on a deaf ward. Why was that not in consideration at that point?' Mr McCullagh replied: 'It was in consideration. 'Obviously, we see she was in distress and I did discuss various options that could be available in terms of immediate support because there is usually a bit of a delay in getting someone admitted to hospital.' Mr McCullagh told the court Ms Nunn had eventually 'changed her mind' and 'wanted to continue with the community support that was in place for her.' He said: 'For me, if Imogen didn't engage with those support options, then I would have been very concerned.' On December 30, Mr McCullagh emailed Ms Nunn's psychologist Julia Lord from the deaf adult community team (DACT), which is part of the South West London and St George's NHS Trust. The inquest heard Ms Nunn met Ms Lord on the same day and told her she 'did not feel safe' and had 'a plan to kill herself' by drinking poison, though she denied having any chemicals in her possession at the time. The court previously heard Ms Nunn had in fact ordered a lethal chemical substance online on November 14, which was delivered to her home address on November 21. Mr McCullagh told the court: 'Julia was concerned, she felt that she was at high risk. 'Immy had expressed to Julia strong thoughts of killing herself by drinking chemicals.' Asked by the coroner whether Ms Nunn had previously mentioned ingesting poison to Mr McCullagh, he replied: 'She had mentioned it in the past. 'It was a concern, for sure. 'But it was a specific thing that she couldn't have, or stated she didn't have, so that restrained the risk.' The coroner heard on Monday that Ms Nunn had contacted her support worker at DACT on November 23 2022, and told them she had 'bought something online that she planned to take to end her life'. The coroner told the court that how Ms Nunn obtained the poison would not form part of the inquest, due to an ongoing police investigation. It comes as Canadian chef Kenneth Law is facing a murder trial in his home country for allegedly supplying poisonous chemicals to people around the world who have ended their lives. He has been linked to dozens of suicides in the UK, according to the National Crime Agency.
