A tragic incident unfolded in Market Weighton, East Yorkshire, as a concerned mother seeking help for her mentally ill son was brutally attacked and killed just moments after paramedics declined to take him for treatment.

Helen Harrison, 59, had reached out for assistance due to concerns about her son Rick Parker’s behavior. She made a distress call, hoping he would receive a mental health assessment. However, when paramedics arrived, Parker refused their assistance, and they deemed him to have the ‘capacity’ to refuse help.

Shortly after their departure, Parker launched a vicious assault on his mother in the family home’s hallway. He strangled her, struck her on the head, and fatally stabbed her in the chest with a 20-inch kitchen knife.

Subsequently, Parker himself alerted emergency services, callously informing the operator it was ‘definitely a body-bag job.’ When paramedics returned to the scene, they found a gruesome sight—the knife still lodged in Helen Harrison’s shoulder.

The court heard that Parker, who had been struggling with mental health issues since a road accident in December 2021, had exhibited concerning behavior leading up to the tragic event. Two weeks prior, he had assaulted his stepfather in an unprovoked attack.

Despite being charged with his mother’s murder and the assault on his stepfather, Parker was deemed unfit to stand trial due to his mental state. A jury, after a three-day finding-of-fact hearing, concluded that he had committed the acts.

The heartbreaking incident underscores the challenges faced by families dealing with mental health crises and the complexities involved in providing adequate support and care.

As the case unfolds further, Parker is likely to be subjected to a hospital order, underscoring the critical intersection of mental health and the criminal justice system.

Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Helen Harrison during this devastating time.