A man has been sentenced to a minimum of 24 years in prison for fatally stabbing his former partner during a court hearing characterized by extreme violence. Paul Gary Turner, 43, was convicted by a Supreme Court jury for the murder of Sarah Thomas, the mother of his two children, during a mediation session in December 2016.
Turner and Thomas were engaged in a custody dispute over their young children, aged seven and four. On the day of the tragic incident, they were attending a hearing regarding Turner’s claim that Thomas owed him around £1,500. Suddenly, Turner brandished a kitchen knife, believed to have been concealed in a file, and viciously attacked Thomas by stabbing her multiple times, resulting in her death due to a severed carotid artery.
Prosecutor James Mactaggart highlighted that Turner deliberately chose a public setting to maximize the impact of his violent act, describing it as an “outrageous” display of aggression. The brutal incident unfolded at the Joondalup courthouse in Perth, Australia, in the presence of a court officer. Turner launched the attack as the officer moved to open the door.
CCTV footage captured Turner entering the meeting room, then exiting and collapsing on the floor afterward. During the trial, it was revealed that Turner had received training in combat knife skills years before, including instruction on targeting major arteries to cause harm.
Turner claimed he had no recollection of the attack, attributing it to dissociative seizures stemming from a head injury sustained while working as a truck driver in 2015. Despite the option for the jury to consider his mental state at the time of the crime, Turner’s defense was rejected, leading to his conviction for murder and a life sentence with a minimum term of 24 years.
In a separate incident, Michael James, 45, fatally stabbed Bradley Hollis, 35, during a confrontation at James’ residence in March 2025. James, who shared the home with his ex-girlfriend Zara Tolley, had a history with Hollis, who had begun a relationship with Tolley post their breakup. In a fit of jealousy, James attacked Hollis with a kitchen knife while his own children were asleep upstairs.
James was sentenced to 14 years in prison after being found guilty of manslaughter and possessing a bladed weapon in public. He also admitted to assaulting Tolley before the fatal attack on Hollis.
