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| Anti-guns campaigner Pat Regan was killed by grandson, court hears | Anti-guns campaigner Pat Regan was killed by grandson, court hears |
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| The anti-guns campaigner Pat Regan, two of whose six sons were shot in gang violence, was stabbed to death by a mentally ill grandson, an inquest has heard. | The anti-guns campaigner Pat Regan, two of whose six sons were shot in gang violence, was stabbed to death by a mentally ill grandson, an inquest has heard. |
| Rakeim Regan, who was 21 at the time of the attack, in Leeds in May 2008, suffered delusions that his grandmother, whom he had idolised, was "conspiring with police to get him", the city's coroners court was told. | Rakeim Regan, who was 21 at the time of the attack, in Leeds in May 2008, suffered delusions that his grandmother, whom he had idolised, was "conspiring with police to get him", the city's coroners court was told. |
| He was diagnosed with severe paranoid schizophrenia after the tragedy, in which he stabbed Regan, 53, many times in the head and neck at her flat, where he had spent the night after she went with him to a local hospital. | He was diagnosed with severe paranoid schizophrenia after the tragedy, in which he stabbed Regan, 53, many times in the head and neck at her flat, where he had spent the night after she went with him to a local hospital. |
| The inquest was told his self-esteem had collapsed after a series of psychiatric problems, and he had contacted a plastic surgeon and hidden all the mirrors in his family's house. | The inquest was told his self-esteem had collapsed after a series of psychiatric problems, and he had contacted a plastic surgeon and hidden all the mirrors in his family's house. |
| Rakeim, who has been detained indefinitely in a secure psychiatric hospital since the diagnosis, suffered a sharp deterioration in the days before the killing, his mother, Frances Regan, told the inquest. She said she believed he should have been sectioned under mental health legislation and required to have hospital treatment. | Rakeim, who has been detained indefinitely in a secure psychiatric hospital since the diagnosis, suffered a sharp deterioration in the days before the killing, his mother, Frances Regan, told the inquest. She said she believed he should have been sectioned under mental health legislation and required to have hospital treatment. |
| He was not by nature violent but "a sensitive boy, quiet and laid back", she said, but he had started smoking cannabis at the age of 11 and had continued covertly. She was convinced that this had had an effect on his mental health. She had never seen him using the drug but had found a photograph of him smoking a joint at a friend's party two years after he got drunk for the first time, aged only nine. | He was not by nature violent but "a sensitive boy, quiet and laid back", she said, but he had started smoking cannabis at the age of 11 and had continued covertly. She was convinced that this had had an effect on his mental health. She had never seen him using the drug but had found a photograph of him smoking a joint at a friend's party two years after he got drunk for the first time, aged only nine. |
| She said she had found cannabis in one of his pockets when he was 15, at a stage when he would light joss sticks in his bedroom, apparently to disguise the smell of the drug. He was later excluded from school because of cannabis use. | She said she had found cannabis in one of his pockets when he was 15, at a stage when he would light joss sticks in his bedroom, apparently to disguise the smell of the drug. He was later excluded from school because of cannabis use. |
| Rakeim had suffered what his mother called a mini-breakdown when his uncle Danny was shot dead in St Helens, Merseyside, in December 2002. This was the tragedy that led to Pat Regan taking a leading role in the campaign group Mothers Against Guns. | Rakeim had suffered what his mother called a mini-breakdown when his uncle Danny was shot dead in St Helens, Merseyside, in December 2002. This was the tragedy that led to Pat Regan taking a leading role in the campaign group Mothers Against Guns. |
| A school dropout, Danny was thought to have been shot by drug dealers who have never been traced. Another of her sons was then shot and wounded in a Leeds nightclub, increasing her determination to speak out. | A school dropout, Danny was thought to have been shot by drug dealers who have never been traced. Another of her sons was then shot and wounded in a Leeds nightclub, increasing her determination to speak out. |
| Tributes at her death included one from the then home secretary, Jacqui Smith, who said: "She worked tirelessly and achieved a great deal, going into schools and educating young people on the dangers of joining gangs and carrying weapons." | Tributes at her death included one from the then home secretary, Jacqui Smith, who said: "She worked tirelessly and achieved a great deal, going into schools and educating young people on the dangers of joining gangs and carrying weapons." |
| Her oldest surviving son, Shane, said at the time: "She dedicated her life to stopping violence like this. She was one of the most genuine people you could ever meet. She died for what she believed in and what she was trying to stop." | Her oldest surviving son, Shane, said at the time: "She dedicated her life to stopping violence like this. She was one of the most genuine people you could ever meet. She died for what she believed in and what she was trying to stop." |
| Frances Regan told the inquest her son had got on the wrong side of the police, and that she agreed with his belief that the police had been harrassing him. After the stabbing, he had told her he believed his grandmother was part of the conspiracy. | Frances Regan told the inquest her son had got on the wrong side of the police, and that she agreed with his belief that the police had been harrassing him. After the stabbing, he had told her he believed his grandmother was part of the conspiracy. |
| She said: "He heard her talking on the phone and felt she was colluding with the police. He felt she was talking to the police and they were coming to get him." | She said: "He heard her talking on the phone and felt she was colluding with the police. He felt she was talking to the police and they were coming to get him." |
| The inquest is expected to last a fortnight. | The inquest is expected to last a fortnight. |
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