Delroy Forrester guilty of manslaughter over killing great-niece Jasmine

Delroy Forrester admitted killing Jasmine Forrester in an attack on February 9 which left her with almost 100 "catastrophic" injuries before insisting "the devil had to die", but denied murder on the grounds he was "legally insane".

But a jury at Wolverhampton Crown Court had heard that a few days before the incident, Forrester had been suffering from a psychotic mental disorder which his daughter, Tyler Forrester, had tried to report to a hospital crisis team.

The 51-year-old's daughter was angry her father was not in hospital and had called the crisis team at Penn Hospital in Wolverhampton hours before the incident to ask for help.

The hospital is a major provider of mental health services.

After saying they could not assist her father, Ms Forrester said: "You'd better make sure he doesn't kill my nan tonight."

Forrester, formerly of Lower Villiers Street in Blakenhall, was convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility after a four-day trial and will be sentenced on September 24, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

The defendant had wanted to kill his son Myles, and was later heard speaking of Jasmine as being "pure and innocent".

Police had been called to the house of the defendant's mother and Jasmine's great-grandmother, Victoria Forrester, in Kent Road, Wolverhampton, in the early hours after the 79-year-old raised the alarm with her neighbour.

Giovanni D'Alessandro from the CPS said: "Jasmine was a friendly, caring and well-liked girl who had a bright future ahead of her. This was all taken away by Delroy Forrester.

"On the night of the murder, he attacked his elderly mother and, while she tried to get help, used a series of improvised weapons to launch a frenzied attack on Jasmine, inflicting serious injuries to her head and body.

"This was a tragic incident and our thoughts are with Jasmine's family and friends."

Detective Inspector Ian Wilkins, from West Midlands Police, said: “This is truly one of the most tragic cases I have dealt with in my career.

“Delroy Forrester had suffered a brain tumour several years ago and treatment had left him with epilepsy.

“While ifs, buts and maybes are easy to say, the clock cannot be turned back and the events that unfolded that night have left a family torn apart by the loss of two loved ones – Jasmine and her great-uncle.

“My heartfelt sympathies are with them as they deal with their loss.”

Jasmine's father speaks of tragic loss of his 'darling little girl'

In a victim personal statement read to the court, Jasmine’s father, Simeon Forrester said: “Jasmine was vibrant, funny and loved life.

"That life was tragically cut short by the actions of a family member with whom she should have been safe in a trusting environment.

"I would give anything to change places with Jasmine; to take away the terror and pain she suffered that night.

"For the rest of my life I will feel guilt, because I was not there to protect her when she needed me most.

“At the Children’s Hospital, when medical staff informed me that the life support would be withdrawn, I felt numb.

"I lay next to Jasmine on her hospital bed. I cuddled her and urged her to be brave on her onward journey.

"No parent should ever have to do this.

Through many tears I held her and watched her last breath escape her. I feel that when she died so, too, did a part of me. Parents should never outlive their children. This is why there is no word to describe them. A wife who loses a husband is called a widow. A husband who loses a wife is called a widower. A child who loses a parent is called an orphan. There is no word for a parent who loses a child.

“Jasmine’s short life enriched the lives of so many people. She will never be forgotten. She will be loved forever. My darling little girl, my Shining Little Star. May she now rest in peace with Heaven’s Angels.”

More from earlier in the trial

In his summing up, Judge Burbidge QC, said: “Details of what went on in the house in the early hours of that morning may not ever be entirely known.

“It became clear shortly prior, during and after the killing, Delroy Forrester was suffering from a mental illness - it had significant input on him killing Jasmine.

"It had such an effect on the prosecution to not persuade you to find him guilty of murder.

“It is sad and an extremely tragic death. This is a tragic case of a child of 11 years of age, with all her life ahead of her, was killed.

“The defendant is clearly a man who had mental health issues at the time and is still suffering from a brain tumour.

“There was significant agreement by the two psychiatrists about the mental health of the defendant leading up to the incident.”

The court had previously heard how the defendant used a broken table leg to cause catastrophic head injuries to Jasmine at a home in Kent Road, Wolverhampton.

A post-mortem examination found she had nearly 100 separate sites of injury all over her body - with over half to her head and neck.

Scans of Forrester’s brain following the incident showed that that a tumour had regrown in an area where he had a previous tumour removed nearly 20 years ago.

Forensic psychiatrist Dr Dinesh McGanty said: “In my opinion he did not understand the nature of his actions. He clearly thought he was not who he was. In his mind, he killed the devil.

“He would not have understood what he was doing was wrong.”

The court heard that family members had raised concerns over the mental health of Forrester in the days leading up to the murder.

A number of statements from family members read out in court had encouraged him to go to hospital following strange behaviour where he referred to his dead father as ‘god’ and his son Myles as the ‘devil’ - stating Forrester had never been a religious person.

His daughter, Tyler, was angry her father was not in hospital on February 8 and had called the crisis team at Penn Hospital hours before the incident to ask for help.

After saying they could not assist her father, she said: “You’d better make sure he doesn’t kill my nan tonight.”