 John Barrett was first convicted at the age of 14 |
A paranoid schizophrenic who stabbed a man to death in a London park was beaten by his father and taken into care at the age of six, a report shows. An independent inquiry for the NHS began after John Barrett admitted killing Denis Finnegan in Richmond Park, south-west London, in 2004.
The report shows NHS errors contributed to his escape from hospital.
But it also details a chaotic life, which includes the writing of a UK chart hit.
Born in London on 1 August 1963, John Barrett was the third of five children.
His mother, who was from Northern Ireland, and his father, who came from Jamaica, had separated by the time he was 14.
According to the report his father was violent towards him as a child and he was first taken into care at the age of six, along with his four siblings, "because his parents could not cope."
He later went to live with his father but returned to care as a result of conflict with his father's new partner and remained there as his father spent time in prison.
Barrett initially received good reports after being placed in a children's home in Leicester but, according to social services, was forced to leave when he became aggressive and disruptive.
He left school without qualifications when he was expelled for attacking a teacher with a chair.
After a period of time out of work Barrett studied drama, but his education was disrupted because of periods spent in prison.
In his 20s and 30s he attempted to break into the music industry and had some success, securing a contract with a recording company as a singer and keyboard player.
'Losses and difficulties'
He wrote a song which made it into the charts but his music career ended in his early 30s when the recording company failed to renew his contract.
His mental illness was first noticed by a girlfriend in 1995.
While on holiday together she realised Barrett had begun to believe the Portuguese police were looking for him.
"That is when I remember things beginning to change with John and I noticed that he was worryingly paranoid," she is quoted in the report.
The report concluded: "The losses and difficulties John Barrett experienced in his early life, including an offending history with his first criminal conviction at the age of 14, are a common feature of the lives of people who become forensic psychiatric patients in later life".
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That is when I remember things beginning to change with John and I noticed that he was worryingly paranoid
