A jury has cleared Pietro Addis of murdering his grandmother, the Brighton restaurant boss Sue Addis, at Lewes Crown Court this morning (Friday 3 March).
Pietro Addis admitted manslaughter after he stabbed Mrs Addis 17 times in the bath of her home in Cedars Gardens, Brighton, in January 2021.
The teenager, who turns 20 this month, was unanimously cleared of murder which he denied on the ground of diminished responsibility by a jury of four men and eight women.
They spent six hours and three minutes considering their verdict which was given to the court shortly after 11.30am today.
The court was told that Pietro Addis admitted manslaughter on the basis that his responsibility was diminished by a brief and transient paranoid psychosis.
The jury accepted his defence and Judge Christine Laing, the honorary recorder of Brighton and Hove, said that she would sentence Pietro Addis on Friday 5 May.
She asked for a psychiatrist’s report to help he assess the level of dangerousness posed by the defendant.
Yesterday the judge said that it was “a deeply sad case”, adding: “Mrs Addis was a warm and generous person who was supportive of her family and would do anything for them.”
Pietro Addis, of Radinden Manor Road, Hove, was 17 when he killed Mrs Addis who ran Donatello, in Brighton Place, and Pinocchio, in New Road, both in Brighton.
The jury was told that the teenager, whose family had just moved to Ring Road, Lancing, had used cannabis and other drugs.
These included Xanax and more than the prescribed dose of Elvanse, his medicine for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
The judge said: “Drug usage was undoubtedly an issue.”
It was the subject of family arguments – but Pietro Addis’s drug use had dropped before he stabbed his 69-year-old grandmother 17 times in the bath at her home.
Referring to the experts’ evidence, the judge said: “Neither of them dispute the effect that drugs were having on the defendant.”
But they were not the primary factor, the judge added, and the two expert witnesses agreed that the pyschosis had not been drug-induced.
The evidence given by the expert witnesses, consultant forensic psychiatrists Peter Misch and Duncan Harding, offered different views.
Dr Misch said that Pietro Addis had suffered from a psychotic episode but Dr Harding said that the explanation was more likely to have been a flash of anger.
Detective Superintendent Mark Chapman, of the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team, said: “This is a tragic case in which a much-loved grandmother, who was widely respected in the Brighton and Hove community, has lost her life in the most terrible circumstances.
“Our thoughts remain with the Addis family and loved ones who have behaved with dignity and compassion throughout this harrowing ordeal.”
Looking forward to seeing him in the community again in 3-5 years. I’m sure he’ll pose no threat at all.
I am bit concerned that the ‘primary factor’ – i.e. the cause of the psychotic episode – is not being stated here. Do the experts know the answer? If so, is there any reason why it is not being revealed here? I imagine it’s not unusual for psychiatrists to give differing opinions, but unclear information isn’t very helpful. If there is any chance the psychosis was drug induced (e.g. by cannabis use), then that underlines the need for a very clear message to go out to all parents, carers, and especially teenagers/young people about the risks, particularly if you are under 20 (brain still developing), carry certain gene variations or have a mental health condition. ‘Recreational’ drug use is treated with a very casual attitude here in Brighton & Hove, but unfortunately it is also very dangerous, and there is a mental health epidemic going on in young people, the causes of which are not being honestly and openly discussed. Please delete my post if any of it is offensive. My sincere condolences to the family.
Odd headline, Frank. A national paper said he’d been convicted of killing her, which he was. Your headlined take on it implies that he was entirely acquitted, which he wasn’t.
RIP Sue Addiss
It’s hard to believe that someone can viciously stab their grandmother to death and not be convicted of murder.
He stabbed her 17 times.
I’ve never known people snap like this after smoking weed, quite the opposite.