The mother of a little girl killed by a man with a history of psychiatric problems is to sue a health authority and hospital trust for alleged neglect. Beverley Palmer's three-year-old daughter, Rosie, was murdered in 1994 after she was abducted and sexually abused by Shaun Armstrong when she popped out of her house to buy ice cream. Armstrong was jailed for life in July 1995 for the murder.

Now Mrs Palmer, of Hartlepool, Cleveland, is taking Tees Health Authority and Hartlepool and East Durham NHS Trust to the High Court for damages, claiming that Armstrong should never have been discharged from hospital. She blamed Rosie's abduction, abuse and murder on alleged negligence - the failure to diagnose, treat and assess Armstrong properly.