Cuddihy not guilty of murdering his parents by reason of insanity

 
 
Julian Cuddihy has been found NOT guilty by reason of insanity of murdering his parents at their home in Carndonagh, Co. Donegal in October 2014.
Mr. Cuddihy believed he was carrying out his mother’s wish to go to heaven when he attacked her and his father with an axe.
 
Two forensic psychiatrists agreed that Julian Cuddihy was having a psychotic episode when he killed his parents Kathleen and James Snr.
In the lead up to the killings, he was refusing to eat because he was convinced his mother was trying to poison him.
He couldn’t sleep because he was worried people were stealing his thoughts and he was convinced the IRA was trying to recruit him.
His family were concerned, and tragically his father James Snr cancelled an appointment with local mental health services just six days beforehand.
On the night of the killings, he said he could hear his mother’s voice in his head asking him to take their lives so they could go to heaven.
The jury returned with the special verdict of NOT guilty by reason of insanity after deliberating for less than an hour.
He’ll now undergo further assessment before the court decides on the best course of action for him later this month.