AN AUTISTIC man who stabbed to death his South Yorkshire stepmother after downing 12 bottles of Newcastle Brown Ale has been convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
A jury took a day to unanimously clear Jason Ferries, aged 21, of murder after he killed 33-year-old Susan Ferries with a single blow to the heart.
Sheffield Crown Court heard Ferries was "worked up and felt trapped" in his father's bedsit on Wath
Road, Mexborough, when he snatched up a knife and plunged it into his stepmother's chest. The jury heard Ferries' responsibility for the death in February was diminished because he was unable to cope with stress due to Asperger's Syndrome - a form of autism - and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
Judge Roger Keen QC adjourned sentencing for four weeks pending a report into the risk posed by Ferries.
He said: "I'm going to have to decide what's going to happen to you in the future. The nature and length of your sentence needs reports."
Ferries, from Newton Heath, Manchester, had been staying with his dad Paul for a few days when the killing happened, the court heard.
On the day of the incident, the pair had been drinking, but Paul had left to pick up a friend's children.
Ferries stayed and downed 12 bottles of Newcastle Brown before returning to his dad's. On the way he was stopped by community officers who confiscated booze he was carrying.
Back at the flat, he was speaking to Paul and Susan, who were on the settee, when he attacked without warning. He then walked into the bedroom and phoned his aunt while his father raised the alarm, the court heard.
Peter Birkett QC, defending, said Ferries had stopped taking Ritalin to control his ADHD aged 16 when he tried to get into the army. He had resumed medication while on remand following the killing, and his condition had improved, he added.
He had three previous convictions, for theft, threatening behaviour and assault, all within the last three years, the court heard.
Det Sgt David Walker, of Doncaster CID, said: "This was a bizarre case. It seemed to be an attack totally out of the blue. There was no argument with the deceased and no emotion afterwards."
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