York man who attacked wife with bow and arrow jailed

A man who fired a bow and arrow at his wife before stabbing her six times in the back as she called 999 has been jailed.

Stephen Carr, 57, attacked his wife, Lorna, at their home in Strensall, near York, on 8 September after drinking a litre of vodka and telling her “you are dying tonight”.

Despite the frenzied attack, in a letter to Judge Simon Phillips KC, Mrs Carr said her husband was a “loving, caring, compassionate man” and she intended to continue their marriage.

Carr, who was found guilty of attempted murder after a trial, was jailed for 17 years and told he would serve an additional three years on licence following his release.

The court heard the couple had been arguing over the care of his mother who lived with them and had advanced dementia.

Carr told the hearing he had drunk “at least a litre of vodka” prior to the attack.

North Yorkshire Police said he had pursued his wife around the house with a bow he had previously used in target archery competitions.

The force said he had fired one shot, which hit a door, before firing three more at her as she hid under a duvet.

He then took a knife from the kitchen and stabbed her repeatedly in the back as she spoke to a 999 call handler.

His actions with the weapon, which he owned because he often took part in archery sessions, were caught on his own CCTV cameras.

The force said she could be heard shouting “Don’t kill me Steve, please. Think of your mum”.

When officers arrived at the house they found Carr sitting in his garden shed and arrested him.

The court heard he had sent his wife a message after the attack saying: “I’m glad I didn’t do what I wanted to do. I did say you were pushing me to far [sic]. My bag [sic] sorry.”

During his trial he claimed he had not intended to attack her, saying he had blacked out and could not remember what had happened.

The court heard he had no background of violence or abuse, with his behaviour on the night described as a “one-off, out of character incident” where drink had played a part.

Mrs Carr said, in her letter, that her husband was “a very broken man” that night but she had forgiven him and trusted that he would never hurt her again.

Speaking after the hearing Det Ch Insp Jonathan Sygrove said: “It’s hard to imagine the terror the victim felt being shot at with a bow and arrows, then set on with a knife by her own husband.

“This was also a harrowing incident for our officers and control room staff who responded to the 999 call, and their professionalism ensured Carr was promptly located and arrested before anything further could happen.”

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