Family to urge Government to put mum's killer in high-security facility

The family of a Stirling care worker stabbed to death by a resident are to meet Scottish Government ministers to plead for a female high-security facility in Scotland.

Michele Rutherford, 54, was killed by Kellyanne McNaughton on March 7, 2023, at Craighall Court in Stirling after failed attempts to get the 33-year-old psychiatric help.

Mrs Rutherford’s family feel “angry and let down” as the equivalent of the State Hospital at Carstairs does not exist for women, leading to lengthy delays and distress for them throughout the judicial process.

Her husband William and daughter Amy have raised the issue with MSPs and ministers but claim to have received an “entirely unsatisfactory response”.

On Tuesday, the family will meet with Scotland’s justice secretary Angela Constance and social care minister Maree Todd.

Amy previously told STV News: “We can’t be the first family this had happened to. She (McNaughton) can’t be the first woman in Scotland with mental health issues to commit such a crime.

“So why is there not somewhere in place (in Scotland)? It just seems like someone has missed the mark.

“My mum was just the best person. She loved her job and she was always going above and beyond for her work.”

The only “high risk” facility in Scotland is the State Hospital at Carstairs in South Lanarkshire, which caters only for men.

Mrs Rutherford’s family attended multiple court hearings over six months, where they learned there had been failed discussions about transferring McNaughton to two clinics, as well as the Rampton Secure Hospital in England.

It was confirmed in June that McNaughton would receive treatment at the Priory Hospital Llanarth Court in Monmouthshire, Wales – but that is a deemed a “medium-risk” facility.

Mrs Rutherford’s husband William previously said: “We need a high-risk facility for women in this country. If somebody does something and the criteria says they need to go into a high risk facility then that’s where they need to go. “

The Scottish Government has written to Mrs Rutherford’s family, saying there have been a number of meetings with stakeholders to consider the challenges around prison to hospital transfers and how a high secure service for females could be provided in Scotland.

The letter states a formal business case will be developed within the next 12 months that will outline resourcing and potential costs.

McNaughton originally faced a murder accusation

McNaughton admitted in January to culpable homicide following the attack on Mrs Rutherford at the supported accommodation in Craighall Court in Stirling, run by The Richmond Fellowship charity.

She had originally faced a murder accusation, but prosecutors accepted her guilty plea to the reduced charge of the grounds of diminished responsibility.

Two other carers, Moira McMillan and Victoria Hendry, were also stabbed before they persuaded 33-year-old McNaughton to release the knife.

McNaughton had low IQ and been diagnosed with emotionally unstable personality disorder.

She had spoke of having “trances” which made her “unaware of what was happening” and “only becoming aware at the end of it”.

Dr Nicola Swinson – consultant forensic psychiatrist at NHS Forth Valley – told the hearing: “There would be a risk to the public and to herself if at liberty.”

McNaughton, who has no previous history of violence, is to be detained without limit of time.

What is the Scottish Government saying?

Justice secretary Angela Constance said: “My thoughts are with Michele Rutherford’s family and I totally sympathise with everything they have gone through.

“Unfortunately there were a number of complex issues that had to be resolved as this progressed through the court system that we are committed to addressing.

“We are working with the NHS and the justice system to ensure measures are put in place to prevent this from happening again.

“In addition, the NHS and the Scottish Prison Service are working to improve access and care for women within forensic mental health settings including developing a sustainable solution that will meet the particular needs of women.”