Man given indefinite hospital order after killing his estranged mother

A man who killed his estranged mother in Macclesfield has been given an indefinite hospital order.

Simon Carter, 50, of no fixed address, appeared at Chester Crown Court on 20th July 2026 to be sentenced after pleading guilty to the diminished responsibility manslaughter of his mother Gwyneth Carter.

He was given an indeterminate section 37 hospital order with a section 41 restriction under the Mental Health Act 1983.

Carter who has remained detained under the Mental Health Act since his arrest on 20 July 2025, had attended his mother’s address on Pearson Street on 12 July 2025 to enquire about his father. Carter who had been living in Torquay and estranged from his mother for the past 19 years, turned up at the address completely unannounced. He was informed by Gwyneth that his father had died two years earlier and he then left the address after a short 10-15 minute visit.

Gwyneth had been concerned regarding the behaviour of Simon when he visited and told her sister Janis she wasn’t sure if he had been on drink and drugs and that he wasn’t behaving like her son. 

When Janis failed to get any response from Gwyneth by texts and calls over the next couple of days, she went over to Gwyneth’s house and alerted a neighbour on 18 July. That was when they made the sad and distressing discovery.

Officers and paramedics attended, and Gwyneth, 72, was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.

A Home Office Post Mortem concluded cause of death was from multiple injuries to the head and neck.

DI Simon Mills said:

“The investigation was long and complex and over 4,000 hours of CCTV footage was recovered in the local area.  Through our enquiries the movements of Carter were evidenced in the local area showing him coming and going from the address at the relevant times.  Extremely strong forensic evidence placed him at the scene through his DNA and footwear – we held an extremely strong hand of evidence. 

"It was sadly apparent through the enquiries that Carter had been behaving erratically and that he likely had undiagnosed mental health issues.  Once arrested strong medical evidence showed that Carter did not have the required capacity at the time of the murder, hence why the plea of diminished responsibility manslaughter was accepted by the prosecution. 

"Our thoughts are with the family of Gwyneth, and hopefully this indeterminable sentence can allow the family to grieve and process the extremely sad events they have been subjected to.

"I also wish to take the opportunity to thank all the members of the public that assisted with enquiries and responded to our witness appeals.  The evidence that we held by the end of the investigation was overwhelming.”

Her family said at the time:

“She was a hardworking, strong lady with a laugh you could not forget, she was well known years ago for playing darts for a local team, she was competitive and always up for a good time.  She was stubborn, known for always standing her ground and protective of those she loved. In recent years she found comfort and companionship with her beloved dog, Oscar.”

Pictured - Simon Carter.