82- year-old from Camborne unlawfully killed by his own son

Steven Forster from Camborne was jailed for 12 years for manslaughter in 2022 after brutally attacking his elderly father Barrie Forster in an act of frustration about his own life.

Steven Forster vented his anger by punching his 82-year-old father Barrie repeatedly around the face and head in an "outburst of violence".

Steven Forster from Camborne was jailed for 12 years for manslaughter in 2022 after brutally attacking his elderly father Barrie (Image: D&C Police)

Mr Forster Senior sustained significant injuries during the attack at his Camborne home on November 20, 2020 and died in hospital a few days later.

The jury at the trial concluded that the injuries inflicted during the assault were a direct cause of his father’s death.

At an inquest into his death Cornwall coroner Andrew Cox found that Barrie Forster had been unlawfully killed and issued the PDR after deciding his death could have been prevented.

Mr Forster senior was living in a flat in Gurney Mews, Camborne at the time of the assault. He had a number of medical conditions but lived an active and independent life.

Steven Forster had been released from prison a few days before and his father allowed him to move in with him.

On the day of the assault the pair went into Camborne town centre. Steven Forster became difficult and aggressive with staff at a local bank after being unable to withdraw money due to a lack of identification or a bank card.

He took out his frustration by pulling down railings and banging on the bank window; this frustration would later spill into violence against his father.

Barrie Forster was not happy and told his son that he should change his behaviour, or he would get into more trouble. When they returned to the flat, Steven Forster attacked his father as he sat in a chair in his bedroom.

Barrie Forster was unlawfully killed by his son the coroner found (Image: D&C Police)

It took Steven Forster at least 30 minutes to call an ambulance. When police and paramedics arrived, they found Mr Forster Senior badly beaten with substantial bruising to his face, head and neck. He had also sustained a broken nose, a fractured cheekbone, and a serious ear injury due to the impact of the assault.

His son admitted that he had struck his father repeatedly and was "just going nuts" during the attack.

Barrie Forster was taken to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, where he died six days later on November 26, 2020.

The court heard from prosecution medical experts that the assault was a significant cause of death, as it triggered internal bleeding from an existing condition.

Mr Cox recorded the cause of death as:

1a) Multi-organ failure.

1b) Acute Upper Gastro-Intestinal Haemorrhage in a Man with Ischaemic Heart Disease and on Treatment with Apixaban; Craniofacial Trauma Necessitating Surgical Repair.

He said Forster Jr had been released from custody two days earlier and had recently had three spells in custody the last two sentences having been imposed after offences committed against his sister who had the protection of a Restraining Order.

He found the risk Forster posed to Barrie had not been assessed properly or at all by the Probation Service particularly in light of a complaint of sexual assault by Barrie Forster against another family member and in the context of recent assaults by him against other members of the family.

He said additionally, no, or no adequate, assessment had been made by the Probation Service of the suitability of Barrie’s address as a place at which Forster could live after his release from custody.

After an earlier release from custody Forster had been found a bed in approved premises where he had stayed for six months.

Thereafter, he had stayed in two B&Bs in another county before returning to Cornwall where he was homeless for a period, living in a tent at different locations.

After his most recent custodial sentence, a formal application for a bed at approved premises had not been made but, informally, members of the Probation Service had been told one was not available.

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Discussions were ongoing with the council’s homelessness team, but accommodation had not been secured. Forster had earlier convictions for arson. The Probation Service had thought Forster would be found a room at a Travelodge or similar.

In the event, on the day of his release from custody, it was brought to the attention of the Probation Service that Forster intended to sleep on a sofa at his father’s address. The suitability of this accommodation was not considered.

He said the risk Forster presented to Barrie was not assessed.

“Had this been done, I found it was more likely that not Forster would not have been permitted to live with his father and the assault would not have occurred when it did. He said: “During the course of these inquests, the evidence has revealed matters giving rise to concern. In my opinion there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken.”

He said he was concerned there was a lack of accommodation available to the Probation Service in which prisoners released from custody may properly be placed, including both Approved Premises (which I understand to be the responsibility of the MoJ [Ministry of Justice]) and more generally through the local authority to avoid homelessness.

“As a consequence, some prisoners are released and become effectively homeless (with increased difficulties in supervision) while others are accommodated at unsuitable premises, as happened in this instance,” he said.