Wales orders mental health case review

The Welsh Assembly launched a review yesterday after a schizophrenic who slashed a man's throat was released into the community and went on to kill a stranger.

Paul Khan, 34, carried out a frenzied knife attack on 72-year-old Brian Dodd at Ffrith Beach in Prestatyn, north Wales, in March.

Khan, of Cardiff, pleaded guilty at Chester Crown Court on Friday to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

It emerged that Khan was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order in 1996 after walking into a Cardiff library and slashing a man's throat.

In 2000, a mental health review tribunal ruled that he could be treated in the community.

A spokeswoman for the Welsh Assembly said: "Last year, new policies were implemented following a report by the Health Service Ombudsman. We will look at this case in line with these."

The Independent on Sunday is running a campaign for better treatment for the mentally ill, including those held in secure hospitals.