A 90-year-old man who stabbed his blind and sick wife because he could “no longer cope” with her care has been spared prison.
Edward Turpin, a retired butcher, got a carving knife from his kitchen and attacked his wife Joan in bed at their home in Orpington, Kent, in September last year.
Afterwards, he dialled 999 and told the operator: “I don’t want to stop the bleeding. We want to die.”
Mrs Turpin, who has lost her eyesight, has diabetes and needs a catheter, had become increasingly dependent on her husband before the attack, the Old Bailey was told.
The couple had been married for nearly 70 years, but Turpin began to feel like he could “no longer cope” when he had to care for her, jurors heard.
Giving evidence, Turpin said the “last thing” he wanted was to harm his wife.
He was cleared of attempted murder but found guilty of a lesser offence of wounding earlier this month, on the basis that he was reckless as to the injuries she might sustain.
On Wednesday, he was sentenced in his absence because he is in hospital with pneumonia.
Mrs Turpin, who is also 90, has been in a care home since the knife attack and can only speak to her husband by phone.
Victim suffered collapsed lung
Alistair Richardson, prosecuting, read out a statement prepared by a care worker on Mrs Turpin’s behalf. It said that while her injuries had healed well, the “psychological impact is huge” and “her whole life has been turned upside down”.
It added: “Joan is very wary of strangers after being attacked with a knife and needs constant reassurance from people she knows. Joan had been extremely stressed and anxious as the trial approached.
“She is fully aware Edward broke the law and what has happened since is a consequence of his actions.”
Mr Richardson said Turpin’s culpability was high, having inflicted many injuries to his “extremely vulnerable” wife.
One of the wounds caused a collapsed lung and it was “a matter of luck” that she did not die, he said.
In mitigation, Simon Gledhill told the court that Turpin had “overwhelming regret” about what happened. “He has expressed on more than one occasion a strong desire to give his wife a hug and tell her he is sorry,” he said.
‘Too proud’ to ask for help
Judge Alexia Durran sentenced Turpin to two years in prison, suspended for two years.
She said he was simply “too proud” to ask members of the family for help to look after his wife.
Turpin was “overcome by the stress and the responsibility of looking after his wife” at the time of the attack, she said.
Judge Durran added: “Mr Turpin will never be allowed to live independently with his wife again.”
She addressed him in his absence, saying: “You are a man of impeccable good character. You were a butcher in Smithfield market for 30 years.
“Police investigations have supported Mrs Turpin’s assertion that you have never raised a hand to her in all your years of marriage.”
She noted his “strong personal mitigation”, but said: “Your actions though cannot go without punishment. What happened that September morning should never have happened.”
