A husband who attempted suicide by slitting the neck of his terminally sick wife said he did it “out of love.”
Dyanne Mansfield, 71, who was suffering from cancer, was killed by Graham Mansfield, 73, who afterwards left court unpunished.
He explained how he carried his devoted wife to the garden’s base and killed her there.
The couple had already decided how they would pass away, with Graham promising to kill his wife by cutting her throat from behind, “Like you see in the movies.”
He brought a B&Q Stanley knife from his toolbox, along with two more kitchen knives in case the first one didn’t work.
Graham said she had a coat on because it was chilly. She was so frail that he had to assist her. She won’t make a sound, she declared. She actually didn’t.
He explained how they decided to use a knife as a means of execution.
Graham said she left it to her.
When they went on vacation, she would tell him, “Graham, you do the research. Just show her the possibilities.
And they had run out of choices. The only thing he could think of was the knife.
Graham had previously stated that in October 2020, only a few weeks after they had celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary, his wife was informed that she had stage 4 lung cancer.
Graham reported that the suicide pact was initially brought up after they got home from the hospital.
If things “went too terrible,” Dyanne questioned whether he would be ready to murder her.
On the condition that he “would have to go with her,” he consented.
Graham was discovered at the couple’s house on the morning of March 24 last year while his wife’s body was slumped in a chair at the foot of the yard.
Weeping and expressing each other how much they loved each other was how they spent their final night together.
The next day at approximately 5 o’clock, Dyanne drank a glass of red wine, while Graham drank a beer can, a scotch, and lemonade.
Are you prepared, he inquired? Yes, she won’t make a noise, his wife retorted.
Graham killed his wife by slitting her throat. He then attempted to cut his own throat.
After Mansfield called 999 and informed the operator that he had killed his wife of 40 years at 9 o’clock the day before, before trying to kill himself, police and paramedics sped to the residence.
He just dialed 911 since he knew his sister would soon call and he was afraid she would discover him in a critical condition.
According to Graham, he asked the medics to let him die.
Mansfield was found guilty of manslaughter earlier this month after a jury of ten men and two women deliberated for 90 minutes.
Mansfield received a two-year prison term with a two-year suspension.
“The circumstances of this case are a misfortune for him and are uncommon in the experiences of this court,” Mr. Justice Goose told the accused as he handed down the sentence.
The sooner they can legalize any type of assisted suicide for those with terminal illnesses in their instance, the better for this nation, in his opinion.
Dyanne would be furious now that he has a conviction for carrying out something she instructed us to do,” he continued. He realized he couldn’t survive without her.
She is happy for Graham that this experience is done, said Rachel Fletcher, his attorney from the legal firm Slater Heelis. He shouldn’t have been prosecuted, and he most likely wouldn’t have been in the future either.
This country’s law is harsh and has to catch up with other nations throughout the world.
Current rules “force loving family members to become criminals,” according to Sarah Wootton, CEO of the advocacy group Dignity in Dying, and an assisted dying law “would incorporate upfront protections to better protect individuals.”
