A MUM who was suffering from psychosis climbed onto a railway track with her daughter before they were both hit by a train and killed, a coroner heard today.
Leighane Redmond, 27, had been with three-year-old Melsaide Parris at Taplow station in Buckinghamshire for an hour without staff approaching them.
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Leighane Redmond and her three-year-old Melsaide Parris both died when they were hit by a train Credit: Hyde News & Pictures
A pre-inquest review heard how the mum managed to climb over some temporary metal fencing to access the tracks in February 2019.
Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC told Buckinghamshire Coroner's Court: "This was a very vulnerable woman with mental health issues, with multiple red flags in terms of psychosis with multiple agencies, who was not picked up sooner.
"A particular concern of my client’s is in relation to how long they were at the train station prior to the incident and whether there was active monitoring of the CCTV.
"Dealing with the length of time they were there, in circumstances where activity such as someone remaining in place for an hour on a platform and not boarding a train, what should be done?”
The lawyer, who is representing Leighane's mum, added: "On the material seen so far, it is plainly arguable that she was in fact suffering psychosis or a psychotic episode from at least December 2018."
Melsadie's dad, Leroy Parris, attended the hearing by a remote link - but was not given legal representation despite previous efforts to get support.
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The mum and daughter had been at a train station for an hour without staff approaching them Credit: Hyde News & Pictures 3
Little Melsadie was described as a 'very happy' and clever child Credit: Hyde News & Pictures
In a touching tribute, he described the toddler as a “very happy, clever and loving child” with a “bright future ahead of her”.
Mr Parris wrote online: "My beautiful three-year-old daughter Melsadie Adella-Rae Parris was cruelly taken away from me and my family with no warning, no reason or no explanation.
"No words can describe the feeling of excruciating pain a parent has to endure when coming to terms with losing their child and then having to find the strength to plan their funeral to say goodbye in the weeks to follow is truly heartbreaking.”
Ms Gallagher said the family wanted to know who had authorised the low-quality fencing that lacked the normal metal spikes on top.
The lawyer told the court that so far, her legal team had not been able to find out who had put up the fencing while that station was being renovated as part of Transport for London's (TfL) Crossrail project.
She also argued that the family had been let down by the State and said authorities had breached their human rights in failing to properly treat Ms Redmond's psychosis.
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Nuckinghamshire Coroner Crispin Butler heard submissions about whether authorities had breached Leighane's rights under Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights.
The coroner ruled he would gather further submissions before he made a final decision about whether to invoke the wide-ranging article that could have serious consequences for some of the agencies involved.
The full inquest is scheduled to last four weeks and take place in November.
YOU'RE NOT ALONE
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society - from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others... You're Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858 Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393 Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41 Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123