The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
Murderer attacked therapist with knife
COOKING SESSION ENDED IN STABBINGS
A MURDERER has been given his third life sentence after repeatedly knifing a therapist during a cooking session at a psychiatric hospital.
Newcastle Crown Court heard that William Johnstone calmly consumed an ice lolly after the attack, which took place at St Nicholas Hospital, in Gosforth, Newcastle.
Occupational therapist Ryan Leaney was helping Johnstone, who was jailed for life in 2002 for murdering and dismembering his mother’s partner. He got a further life sentence in 2006 for wounding with intent after slashing a fellow prisoner with a makeshift knife.
Mr Leaney said there had been no issues in the lead-up to the attack and Johnstone appeared settled and stable, but while his back was turned, Johnstone, 44, picked up a knife he had been allowed to use to cut some bacon while making a pizza, and stabbed Mr Leaney five times as he ran for his life.
Although the blows missed major arteries and organs, the court was told that the impact on Mr Leaney had been ‘devastating.’
He told the court that on May 10, 2022, Johnstone had asked to cook pizza rather than his usual dish, which was viewed as a positive thing by the victim.
He said he had no concerns about Johnstone and allowed
him access to a large knife from a usually-locked drawer to cut some bacon.
Nick Dry, prosecuting, said Mr Leaney suddenly became aware of Johnstone advancing towards him with the knife, which he used to stab him in a “frenzied” onslaught.
Mr Leaney managed to run to safety and Johnstone barricaded himself in and was seen calmly consuming an ice lolly.
He removed the barricade when police arrived and told them the knife was back in the drawer, saying: “The evidence is there for you.”
Johnstone, who has paranoid schizophrenia, said he had heard the voice of the devil and thought Mr Leaney intended to do him harm and so felt compelled to attack him.
Mr Dry said: “He expressed remorse, saying Ryan was a good man who he liked.”
The court heard Mr Leaney has suffered from anxiety, flashbacks and low mood and has symptoms of PTSD since the attack and fears he will never be the same again.
He is scarred for life to his neck and chest and has been unable to return to the job he loved.
In a victim impact statement, he said: “I’m reminded about the incident every day when I look in the mirror and see the scars on my neck and chest.
“I helped Will to use a computer to order some trainers and he thanked me. Going from this to him stabbing and nearly murdering me, I just don’t understand why he did it. The impact will be with me and my family forever. I now feel lost in my life. I almost grieve because I miss my old life.
“I went to work on what seemed like a normal day but very quickly it changed my life forever. Everything seemed fine, there were no indicators anything was wrong then all of a sudden he attacked me with a knife. He even stabbed me in my back when I fled for my life.”
Mr Leaney said he is still on painkillers, adding: “It doesn’t feel fair at all to go through nearly being murdered at work when I was just doing my job.”
The court heard Johnstone has a long history of violent offences. In 1996 he was convicted of wounding with intent after he used a smashed bottle to inflict a number of stab wounds and the following year he was sentenced for GBH with intent after using a rolling pin to cause fractures to his victim’s knee, shoulder and elbow. He was also jailed for false imprisonment and affray and during that sentence he threw boiling water over a fellow prisoner.
In 2002, he was jailed for life for murdering his mother’s partner and while he was in prison he got another life sentence for wounding with intent in 2006. In 2020, he was jailed again for attempted GBH with intent after throwing boiling water over a female prison officer.
He was originally charged with attempted murder for the attack on Mr Leaney, but prosecutors accepted his guilty plea to wounding with intent.
He was jailed for life with a minimum term of five years and four months.