Man 'reached breaking point' before stabbing girlfriend to death in frenzied home attack

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A man said he had reached 'breaking point' before stabbing his girlfriend to death over fears she would attack him, an inquiry heard.James Kennedy, 37, inflicted 57 wounds on Joanne Gallacher, 44, in a frenzied attack at his home in Biggar, Lanarkshire.He was later assessed by consultant psychiatrist Dr Taimur Khan after being arrested in December 2018.Khan told a fatal accident inquiry at Hamilton Sheriff Court that Kennedy was 'polite and relaxed' during a two-hour assessment where he was passed fit to be questioned by police officers.Giving evidence via video link from Australia, he said: "I asked him what was the triggering factor for the extreme action and he initially didn't give me specifics but then said things got to a breaking point and then later he said he was paranoid about her and he thought she might attack him and that is why he was paranoid about her and did that."Asked if Kennedy had any spoken of regret, Khan replied: "He said she had children to care for and he would like for her to be alive for her kids."Khan told the court he deemed Kennedy not to have any significant mental issues but could not say what he had been like when he killed Joanne.He added: "He was quite cooperative, he was polite, he was relaxed and didn't show any signs of distress or anxiety."He was quite subdued and he fixed his gaze on the ground and was really co-operative with my questions."I wasn't too concerned about his mental health at the time when I interviewed him and didn't think he was suffering from any significant illness when I saw him and he was fit to be interviewed by the police."I satisfied myself over two hours that I had not missed any signs of serious mental illness."NHS Lanarkshire mental health nurse Rebecca