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Man warned police then stabbed Bristol prostitute |
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Crimewatch
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Published in The Bristol Evening Post
6th March 2010
A violent man with a severe personality disorder warned police he wanted to stab someone, then went out and repeatedly slashed a prostitute within minutes of making the 999 call. Paul Kane attacked Leanne Boyce straight after phoning through his grim warning, Bristol Crown Court heard.
Terrified Miss Boyce, who thought she would be killed as she fought him off, screamed to a friend: "Tell my kids I love them, I think I'm going to die," as she slumped to the ground with a punctured lung. Kane, 40, of no fixed address, admitted wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and was jailed indefinitely.
The Recorder of Bristol Neil Ford QC jailed him for public protection, and said he should remain behind bars for a minimum of four-and-a-half years before the parole board considered his eligibility for release. The court heard Kane had a "worrying" record for violent offences dating from the early 1990s, including a wounding with intent for which he was jailed for 10 years.
Summing up the facts of the case, the judge said that in November 2008, Miss Boyce was working as a sex worker. He said: "That night you (Kane) had phoned the police and said that you needed help. You said you had wanted to stab someone. Within a couple of minutes of that call you entered into negotiation with Miss Boyce for sexual services. She took you to a cemetery and you immediately attacked her."
The court heard Kane produced a knife and stabbed Miss Boyce to her chest, causing her to fall. He then stabbed her in her arm and leg. The judge said: "The chest wound penetrated her lung. It was a terrifying ordeal and she knew that she was likely to die. But for her friend Mr Palmer, who came to her assistance, she probably would have. The injury that she suffered was, in my judgement, a particularly grave one. Thereafter you telephoned the police again, asking for help, saying you had 'just lost it', you had been responsible and you had lost the plot."
The court heard when police found Kane he told them: "It's me that you want." He then showed them the area where he had dumped the blade.
Judge Ford QC said there had been extensive psychiatric assessment of Kane, who presented as a challenging and worrying case. It was noted that, before the attack, Kane appreciated he was becoming unwell and had sought help.
"Unfortunately things developed and there was an inevitable outcome that someone was attacked," said the judge. "You have been assisted by being in hospital for a very significant period of time and you are able to express regret for what you have done. I accept that that regret is genuine."
The court heard it was not certain as to whether continued hospital treatment for Kane was the most appropriate course. A doctor's report, however, said Kane suffered from very severe and complex paranoid, schizoid and anti-social personality disorders.
The judge concluded: "I'm confident there is a significant risk of death or serious injury caused by you committing further offences." He stressed the parole board would only consider Kane for release if he was not deemed dangerous, and if he was released he would remain on licence for life unless it was ended by the Secretary of State.
Miss Boyce, 32, of Clifton, said she was now clean after a nine-year drug problem and had started a new life after three years as a sex worker. The mum-of-four told the Evening Post: "He stabbed me nine times to my neck, above and below my breast, knee, leg and arms. I thought I was going to die. I had a punctured lung and blood was pouring everywhere. Someone ran out and there were a few people around me. One of them used Clingfilm to try to dress my wounds, and I was in and out of consciousness. Someone tried to close a wound with their hands."
Miss Boyce was taken to Bristol Royal Infirmary and remained there for a month, before contracting the MRSA bug and staying in for another month. She has now been off drugs for five months, is on a computer course and hopes to work in clothes design.
The multiple scars on her body serve as a brutal reminder of what Kane did to her. She said: "I'm not a sex worker any more. I'm getting my life back on track. He did me a favour, in a way."
A police spokesman said the call from Kane was dealt with as a priority and officers attended within minutes.
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