Son (35) found not guilty of murdering father

ACCUSED?John Biggins appearing at Ballina District Court where he was first charged with the murder of his father Tom in 2012. ?Pic: Hany Marzouk

Son (35) found not guilty of murdering father


John Biggins committed to Central Mental Hospital

On Friday last, May 30, John Biggins (35) of Ballynalty, Cross, Claremorris, was acquitted of murdering his father, Thomas (Tom) Biggins (70), at the same address on May 6, 2012.
The Central Criminal Court heard Mr Biggins was diagnosed with severe schizophrenia and was in receipt of disability allowance. After a two-day trial, the jury returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity after 27 minutes of deliberation.
Mr Bernard Condon SC prosecuting asked the court for an order to commit Mr Biggins to the Central Mental Hospital to appear before the court again tomorrow (Wednesday). Mr Condon said that Mr Biggins’s treating psychiatrist would be in court on that date.
Mr Justice Paul Carney thanked the jury before, exempting them from further service for life.
The court heard that Tom Biggins was shot twice – once in the chest, and once in the hand – at his 100-acre with his own legally held shotgun. Paramedics tried to resuscitate him at the scene, but he was pronounced dead at Galway University Hospital at 3.35pm that day.
State Pathologist Professor Marie Cassidy carried out a postmortem and said the cause of death was the shotgun wound to left side of the chest, while the shotgun wound to the right hand was a contributing factor.
On Friday, defence witness Dr Paul O’Connell of the Central Mental Hospital said that a mental state examination showed that Mr Biggins had a range of psychotic symptoms and had a mild intellectual disability. The diagnosis was supported by Dr Stephen Monks, another consultant forensic psychiatrist from the same hospital.
Dr O’Connell said he believed that Mr Biggins was mentally ill when he shot his father, and that his judgement was grossly impaired. He said that Mr Biggins was emotionally disconnected from the enormity of his actions, and that he had a psychotic urge to shoot his father in order to go to prison.
Dr O’Connell agreed with Mr John Jordan SC defending that Mr Biggins had paranoid persecution delusions about his father being abusive to him, which would be very hurtful to his family. He also said that Mr Biggins thought that he was Elvis and thought that he had relationships with celebrity women. On July 26, 2012, Mr Biggins told a doctor that he thought he saw the devil on the day of the shooting.
Detective Sergeant James Carroll told Mr Condon that the accused was one of five children, the eldest of whom had passed away.
Mr Biggins had told gardaí in an interview that when he saw his father’s 12-gauge shotgun, which was loaded with two cartridges, against a pillar in the yard, he took it. He said he then met his father by coincidence coming from the calving boxes and shot him twice.
“He asked me did I shoot my geese and I pulled the trigger on him,” he told gardaí. “He was just there and I pulled the trigger … I don’t know what was going through my mind,” he added.
The accused said he went back in the house, gave the gun to his brother and phoned 999. “I wasn’t in my right state of mind…It’s pure insane what I did,” he told gardaí.
Mr Biggins, who had no previous convictions, said he had tried to kill himself three or four times, and that people should be able to go to clinics to die.
Det Sgt Carroll said the behaviour after the event was ‘quite bizarre’, and that following the shooting, the accused said: “I just shot the aul lad … I’ll be going to jail now.” He said the accused rang 999 and spoke to Garda Mark Kilbride telling him: “Hello garda, I’m turning myself in, I shot my father.”
The accused then drove to Ballinrobe Garda Station and handed himself in, where he was co-operative throughout his detention.
Det Sgt Carroll agreed with Mr Jordan that there was confirmation that the accused had been suicidal between May 3 and May 6.
He agreed it was apparent from an early stage that they would be seeking a mental appraisal of the accused.