Judge awards murderer damages from Psych Facility

As seen in this report from Australia

Within hours of being released from a psychiatric hospital, Kevin Presland stabbed his prospective sister-in-law to death, nearly decapitating her in his frenzy.

Yesterday, he was set to receive $300,000 in damages, after the Supreme Court found Hunter Area Health Service and a psychiatric registrar had breached their duty of care by failing to detain him in Newcastle's James Fletcher psychiatric hospital. If he had been detained, it would have averted the "appalling" death of 25-year-old Kelley-Anne Laws in 1995 and Mr Presland's subsequent trial and 2 years in jail and in a psychiatric unit at Long Bay. [...]

Justice Adams said the Mental Health Act was clear that people who needed to be detained for their own or others' safety should be detained. [He] criticised the hospital's records, saying that the police escort statement about Mr Presland's behaviour could not be found, indicating a communication breakdown at the hospital. He said the psychiatric registrar, Dr Jacob Nazarian, "did not see any psychotic illness or a psychiatric disorder [when assessing Mr Presland] . . . because he did not conscientiously look for them". "I regret to say that I think Dr Nazarian was merely going through the motions, and, even then, only some of them."

It is understood Kevin Presland has moved to Queensland and is working as an electrician. And meanwhile, the family has received the maximum $50,000 in victim compensation for the death of their loved one. Maybe they should sue the psych hospital.

And I admit, it seems there is something odd in Australian law here