Labourer who killed a grandfather and prison inmate found ‘not criminally responsible’ for their deaths
- Worker Paul Clarke killed two men
- He had a severe schizoaffective disorder
A worker who beat a grandfather to death with a baseball bat and killed his cellmate is not criminally responsible for their deaths, a court has been told.
Paul Clarke, 31, was suffering from schizoaffective disorder when he committed the murders, the NSW Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday.
Clarke took the life of Allen Lambert, 70, on November 2, 2021, before he was jailed, and then murdered fellow inmate and sex offender Kevin Byrne, 63, at Silverwater prison.
Psychiatrist reports presented to the court claimed Clarke suffered from a disorder where he ‘did not know the act (of murder) was wrong’.
Paul Clarke, 31, (pictured) has schizoaffective disorder, which meant he didn’t understand killing people was wrong when he killed two NSW men in 2021
Clarke went to Allen Lambert’s house (pictured above left) with a baseball bat on November 2, 2021 and hit him with it
Clarke, from Berkeley Vale, was working at a construction site in Chittaway Bay, on the NSW central coast, near Mr Lambert’s home, according to court documents.
Mr Lambert filed an official complaint about Clarke, The Daily Telegraph reported.
“Now I’m going to fucking schitz and…someone else is going to get fucking hit because you motherfuckers at headquarters are fucking losers,” he said.
Clarke went to the grandfather’s house with a baseball bat on November 2, 2021 and beat him with it.
He was taken to Gosford Hospital where he died.
Clarke recorded another video examining a blue “slugger” bat, saying, “Not bad, not bad.” I didn’t even get a scratch on her.’
While on remand in Silverwater prison, Clarke was in a cell with Byrne, an alleged child molester, when a fight broke out later that same month.
The accused pedophile suffered such serious injuries that paramedics were unable to save his life.
In court, Byrne’s partner Linda Black read out a victim impact statement saying Clarke took Byrne’s life as if it was ‘nothing’.
In the NSW Supreme Court, Justice Stephen Rothman ruled that Clarke was not criminally responsible for the men’s deaths.
Judge Rothman said he would explain the reasons for his finding at a later date.
The court heard Clarke was furious after a complaint was made against him and went to Mr Lambert’s home