Review bid over 'Crossbow Cannibal'

Stephen Griffiths killed three prostitutes
12 April 2012

An MP in the constituency where serial killer Stephen Griffiths dumped body parts has called for a review of how people with personality disorders are dealt with.

Philip Davies said it was "extraordinary" how someone like Griffiths, who psychiatrists said had a long-standing and complex personality disorder, was considered safe to be allowed to live in the community.

The Conservative MP for Shipley was commenting the day after 40-year-old Griffiths was told he would spend the rest of his life in jail after admitting the murders of three prostitutes in Bradford.

Leeds Crown Court heard that Griffiths was known to the authorities and had a string of convictions for possessing weapons and for violence - including slashing a man across the face with a knife.

At one point he spent time at Rampton Special Hospital in Nottinghamshire to see whether he would benefit from medical treatment for his problems, but it was decided he would not.

The court heard Griffiths had a "substantial history" of being assessed by psychiatrists but the experts said he was not suffering from a mental illness.

Griffiths, who referred to himself as the "crossbow cannibal" after the method he used to kill one of his victims, was told he will never be released from prison after carrying out the "wicked and monstrous" crimes.

The former public schoolboy lured sex workers Suzanne Blamires, 36, Shelley Armitage, 31, and Susan Rushworth, 43, to his flat in Bradford where he used knives and power tools to butcher the women in his bath.

The court heard he boasted to police that he cooked body parts and ate some raw.

Mr Davies added: "It does seem extraordinary that someone with his profile was considered safe to be allowed in the community. There does seem to be an issue with regard to people with personality disorders. We need to look at how we deal with people with personality disorders, what treatment we give and what we do with them."

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