Latest news with #PeterSullivan
The Sun
6 days ago
- Health
- The Sun
Why Lucy Letby's lawyers are ramping up killer's freedom bid after bombshell twist in ANOTHER infamous murder case
TWO dramatic court cases saw her convicted of the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of seven more - leaving Lucy Letby facing the rest of her life behind bars. But supporters of the 35-year-old nurse, who believe she is the victim of a miscarriage of justice, are now clinging to fresh hope after a seismic twist in another infamous criminal case - and are calling on MPs to step in. 9 9 The growing band of Letby champions, including MP David Davis, have been buoyed by the recent release of Peter Sullivan, 68, who was freed after 38 years when his murder conviction was overturned. The Court of Appeal quashed his conviction for the murder and sexual assault of 21-year-old florist Diane Sindall, who was battered to death in 1986, when a DNA testing breakthrough proved he was not a match for a semen sample found on her body. On a Facebook group set up for Letby's followers, one supporter said: 'There's another victim, Peter Sullivan, of a miscarriage of justice freed after 38 years of wrongful incarceration for a crime he did not commit. 'We need to put more pressure on our local MPs to speed up Lucy's appeal.' But far from offering a glimmer of hope to the 'Letby is innocent' brigade, the handling of Sullivan's case and that of Andrew Malkinson, wrongly convicted of rape, merely proves it could be years before the evidence is reviewed. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which is currently considering an application for an appeal from Letby's lawyers, has been slammed by critics as 'not fit for purpose' after delays and blunders left the two innocent men floundering in jail years after new evidence that finally cleared them came to light. The legal team for Malkinson, who served 17 years before his rape conviction was quashed in 2023, spent more than a decade pleading with the CCRC to conduct DNA tests on samples taken from the victim, but was repeatedly refused. Those tests, it later emerged, would have seen him released at least a decade earlier. Similarly Sullivan, who was dubbed the 'Beast of Birkenhead', spent 38 years behind bars protesting his innocence despite his lawyers telling the CCRC in 2008 that DNA analysis of a semen sample found on the victim would clear him. And while the forensic test known as Y-STR, which eventually proved his innocence, became available in 2013, the CCRC waited until 2021 to order proper tests, and another four years before he was acquitted. I defend baby killers like Lucy Letby – bombshell new theory could FREE her but I know real truth… & it's NOT medical The Commission's chair, Helen Pitcher, who earned £95,000 a year for a two-day week, was forced to quit in April after Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she was 'unfit' for the role. Now there are calls for the resignation of chief executive Karen Kneller, a lawyer who received a £130,000 salary from taxpayers last year. A report into the Malkinson case, by KC Chris Henley, found Kneller was 'head of casework' at the time of the CCRC's "very poor" work and slammed staff for "muddled" thinking, "casual and dismissive" language and failing to read evidence. She was also in the role when Peter Sullivan's team made their first approach. 9 9 Swell of support Letby, originally from Hereford, is facing 15 whole life sentences for the murders and attempted murders at the Countess of Chester Hospital in Cheshire. Since her two trials, in August 2023 and October 2024, a swell of support has been building for the 35-year-old. Dr Shoo Lee, an eminent neonatal expert who claims his research was incorrectly interpreted by the prosecution to convict Letby, has said 'the medical evidence doesn't support murder [or attempted murder]' in any of the cases'. He is backed by a growing number of those who believe the case against her is flawed. In February, Letby's legal team submitted an application to the CCRC - set up in 1997 to review possible miscarriages of justice - with barrister Mark McDonald hand-delivering the full findings of a 14-strong international panel of experts. Her supporters argue that the babies could have died of natural causes, and Dr Lee claimed his findings on skin discolouration used to support the theory that the nurse killed some of the children by injecting them with air was "misrepresented" in court and that the evidence "wasn't quite right". He and the panel examined all 17 cases cited in the trial and concluded: 'Death or injury of all the affected infants were due either to natural causes or to errors in medical care.' Last month, an email emerged which appeared to contradict a consultant's testament he had caught Letby 'red-handed', standing over the cot of the victim known as Baby K as he was deteriorating without calling for help. In the bombshell missive sent to colleagues at the Countess of Chester Hospital on May 4, 2017, which was not read in court, Dr Ravi Jayaram wrote: 'At time of deterioration... Staff nurse Letby (was) at the incubator and called Dr Jayaram to inform of low saturations.' He added: 'Baby K subsequently deteriorated and eventually died, but events around this would fit with explainable events associated with extreme prematurity.' 'Not fit for purpose' 9 Following the release of Peter Sullivan, Letby has been flooded with a fresh wave of support, with her loyal band of followers drawing apparent inspiration from the latest acquittal. One man wrote: 'A new police investigation and new compensation claims. Those people in charge don't want that to happen anytime soon.' Another posted: 'Lucy and Peter Sullivan were found guilty of a crime by a jury and sentenced accordingly. 'I believe that only pressure from MPs and Lucy's legal team can speed up her case review. Unfortunately our legal system is not fit for purpose when it comes to addressing mistakes.' A link about how to raise the matter with your local MP has been posted to the site. A follower said: 'In Lucy's case there was NO crime so hopefully we can keep pushing that aspect and save the long wait for a retrial.' One woman referred to the CCRC as the 'Criminally Corrupt Reluctance Committee'. Referring to how Mr Sullivan must feel and drawing parallels between the two cases, another supporter said: 'It must be horribly frustrating for him… just as it is for Lucy.' The page, vowing that one day Letby will be freed, has seen an increase to over 3,400 followers. Internet sleuths still pore over the evidence from the trials and press coverage in online forums such as Reddit and Mumsnet. The pages have been flooded with discussions about supposed 'similarities' between the former nurse and Mr Sullivan, who they say were both wrongly jailed. One fan said: 'Worth noting that Mr Sullivan appears to have repeatedly made false statements to the police, a bit like what the Crown claimed Letby did.' Another posted: 'I was struck by the careful emphasis throughout that no one was being blamed for having got it wrong before. It makes me worried for Lucy Letby.' £1million payout 9 9 After the CCRC refused Sullivan's first attempt to challenge his conviction in 2008 he lost his appeal bid in 2019, before again asking the CCRC to refer his case in 2021, raising concerns over police interviews, bite mark evidence used during his trial and the murder weapon. Merseyside Police reopened the investigation in 2023 after the commission found that DNA samples taken from the scene did not match Mr Sullivan. He's now in line for a £1million payout, the maximum compensation claim for a wrongful conviction. Letby lost two bids last year to challenge her convictions at the Court of Appeal. Lawyer Katie Wheatley, partner at Bindmans and head of the Crime, Fraud and Regulatory team, said that while the two cases are 'very different in nature', the legal test for the CCRC remains the same. She said: 'Mr Sullivan was cleared by the Court of Appeal after new DNA tests obtained by the CCRC cast very significant doubt on the safety of his conviction. 'In Lucy Letby's case, her lawyer has said that the CCRC has been provided with new medical evidence from a panel of neonatologists and paediatric experts. 'It will be up to the CCRC to review this material and carry out any further investigations it considers appropriate. 'When considering whether to refer Lucy Letby's case to the Court of Appeal, the CCRC will apply the legal test for referral which is whether it considers there is a real possibility that the Court of Appeal will quash her convictions. 'Thus, while the cases are very different in nature, the legal test applied by the CCRC will be the same.' Timeline of horror - how Letby targeted babies LUCY Letby carried out her horrific crimes in a year-long period at Countess of Chester Hospital. She used insulin and air to inject newborns while working on the neo-natal ward. The collapses and deaths of the children were not 'naturally-occurring tragedies' and instead the gruesome work of 'poisoner' Letby. Her rampage was finally uncovered after staff grew suspicious of the "significant rise" in the number of babies dying or suffering "catastrophic" collapses. Letby was found to be the "common denominator" among the horrifying incidents. Officers then searched her three-bedroom home in Chester and discovered a chilling cache of evidence. The nurse had scribbled haunting notes in diaries and on Post-It notes, including one that read: "I am evil I did this." The note added: "I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. "I am a horrible person." A probe into whether Letby harmed any other babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women's Hospital is ongoing. A corporate manslaughter investigation is also ongoing, as is now a gross negligence manslaughter one. The CCRC receives 1,500-1,600 cases each year, referring around 30 back to the Court of Appeal. The Law Commission is currently consulting on whether the 'real possibility' legal test that the CCRC currently applies should be changed to reflect the body's own view of whether a conviction might be unsafe, rather than having to predict what the Court of Appeal might think. Katie added: 'A change in the legal test might result in the CCRC broadening the focus of its investigations and being able to refer more cases to the Court of Appeal to review.' Even if the CCRC decides to refer Letby's case following the 14-strong panel's findings, the complexity of the case means it could take years, according to legal experts. Meanwhile, lawyers for the families of Letby's victims rubbished the report, claiming it's "full of analytical holes" and "a rehash" of the defence case heard at trial. Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes, of Cheshire Police, also hit back at 'ill-informed and insensitive' critics questioning her guilt. In a strongly worded statement, he insisted the former nurse's case had been 'rigorously and fairly tested' by two juries and two sets of appeal court judges after a painstaking six-year police investigation. Referring to the victims' families, he added: 'Their dignity and composure in the face of intense public discussions with little sensitivity or humanity is remarkable. 'Their words are incredibly honest and powerful and must not be lost in a sea of noise.' Undeterred 9 9 In November, Lady Justice Thirlwall is due to publish the findings from the public inquiry into how the former nurse was able to commit her crimes. Cheshire Constabulary is continuing a review of deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies at the neonatal units of the Countess of Chester Hospital and the Liverpool Women's Hospital during Letby's time as a nurse from 2012 to 2016. But Letby's supporters seem far from deterred and even threw a party to celebrate her 35th birthday at a pub in Clapham, south London. They filled the public gallery during her trial and protested outside Manchester crown court, wearing yellow butterfly badges to match one seen in a photo of Letby in scrubs. Every December since her conviction in 2023, they have sent her Christmas cards in prison. But, even if there are flaws in the prosecution, it will be a long time before they can celebrate a fresh appeal. The charges Letby was convicted on in full Child A, allegation of murder. The Crown said Letby injected air intravenously into the bloodstream of the baby boy. COUNT 1 GUILTY. Child B, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby attempted to murder the baby girl, the twin sister of Child A, by injecting air into her bloodstream. COUNT 2 GUILTY. Child C, allegation of murder. Prosecutors said Letby forced air down a feeding tube and into the stomach of the baby boy. COUNT 3 GUILTY. Child D, allegation of murder. The Crown said air was injected intravenously into the baby girl. COUNT 4 GUILTY. Child E, allegation of murder. The Crown said Letby murdered the twin baby boy with an injection of air into the bloodstream and also deliberately caused bleeding to the infant. COUNT 5 GUILTY. Child F, allegation of attempted murder. Letby was said by prosecutors to have poisoned the twin brother of Child E with insulin. COUNT 6 GUILTY. Child G, three allegations of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby targeted the baby girl by overfeeding her with milk and pushing air down her feeding tube. COUNT 7 GUILTY, COUNT 8 GUILTY, COUNT 9 NOT GUILTY. Child H, two allegations of attempted murder. Prosecutors said Letby sabotaged the care of the baby girl in some way which led to two profound oxygen desaturations. COUNT 10 NOT GUILTY, COUNT 11 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT. Child I, allegation of murder. The prosecution said Letby killed the baby girl at the fourth attempt and had given her air and overfed her with milk. COUNT 12 GUILTY. Child J, allegation of attempted murder. No specific form of harm was identified by the prosecution but they said Letby did something to cause the collapse of the baby girl. COUNT 13 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT. Child K, allegation of attempted murder. The prosecution said Letby compromised the baby girl as she deliberately dislodged a breathing tube. COUNT 14 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT. Child L, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said the nurse poisoned the twin baby boy with insulin. COUNT 15 GUILTY. Child M, allegation of attempted murder. Prosecutors said Letby injected air into the bloodstream of Child L's twin brother. COUNT 16 GUILTY. Child N, three allegations of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby inflicted trauma in the baby boy's throat and also injected him with air in the bloodstream. COUNT 17 GUILTY, COUNT 18 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT, COUNT 19 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT. Child O, allegation of murder. Prosecutors say Letby attacked the triplet boy by injecting him with air, overfeeding him with milk and inflicting trauma to his liver with "severe force". COUNT 20 GUILTY. Child P, allegation of murder. Prosecutors said the nurse targeted the triplet brother of Child O by overfeeding him with milk, injecting air and dislodging his breathing tube. COUNT 21 GUILTY. Child Q, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby injected the baby boy with liquid, and possibly air, down his feeding tube. COUNT 22 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT.
Times
22-05-2025
- Times
Sarah Myatt, who acted for Peter Sullivan to quash his murder conviction
Sarah Myatt, a solicitor-advocate at the law firm Switalskis, represented Peter Sullivan as the Court of Appeal quashed his conviction for murdering a woman in 1986. Sullivan, who is now 68, had spent 38 years in prison before being freed because of fresh DNA evidence in what is thought to be the UK's longest miscarriage of justice case. How long it has taken to clear Peter's name. While Peter remained positive, it has been a long battle despite clear concerns, which was frustrating. For me, moving from mental health law to criminal law has been fascinating and invaluable. It's shown me how fragile the human mind can be and deepened my commitment to fairness and justice — especially for those with mental health challenges or
The Independent
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Ministers to prioritise compensation bid by man wrongly jailed for 38 years
The Government has pledged to prioritise any bid for compensation by a man who spent 38 years in prison after wrongly being convicted of murder. Speaking in Parliament, justice minister Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede said he would 'encourage' Peter Sullivan, 68, to seek a payout. The gross miscarriage of justice has again fuelled criticism of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which is already under fire over its handling of the case of Andrew Malkinson, who served 17 years in prison for a rape he did not commit. Responding to warnings that the independent body which investigates potential miscarriages of justice was 'unravelling quickly', Lord Ponsonby said an interim chair had been identified with an announcement to be made 'imminently'. The previous chairwoman Helen Pitcher resigned in January over the controversy sparked by Mr Malkinson's case, claiming she had been scapegoated. Mr Sullivan, who to date has spent more of his life in prison than free, finally had his name cleared last week after decades protesting his innocence. Crucial DNA evidence was finally unearthed due to scientific advances last year, showing it was another unknown man who raped and murdered 21-year-old Diane Sindall in 1986. Victims of miscarriages of justice can apply to a government compensation scheme. Mr Malkinson was given a six-figure payment in February this year after delays left him struggling to survive financially and turning to food banks. Independent crossbencher Baroness Deech, a former chairwoman of the Bar Standards Board and a member of the Law Commission, said: 'Does it not add insult to injury that after a person has wasted the whole of their life in jail, that they don't get immediate compensation as soon as they are released?' Responding, Lord Ponsonby said: 'We would encourage Mr Sullivan to make an application to the miscarriages of justice application service, and we will prioritise his application because of the length of the prison sentence.' Tory peer Lord Garnier, who previously served as solicitor general, stressed the urgent need to appoint a chair of the CCRC 'not in the near future, but today'. He said: 'It's unravelling. It's unravelling quickly and there will be more Malkinsons, there will be more cases of that hideous nature, unless the Government really grabs hold of this thing and takes charge.' Lord Ponsonby said: 'The objective is to have an interim chair for 18 months to review the operations of the CCRC. 'What I can say is an individual has been identified and is going through the approvals process, so the announcement will be made imminently.'
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Daily Mail
DOMINIC LAWSON: Just as innocent men are coerced by police into confessions, so I fear the vulnerable will be pushed into assisted dying under this seriously flawed Bill
There seemed something horribly familiar about the case of Peter Sullivan. The man hitherto known as 'the Beast of Birkenhead' was released last week after serving 38 years in prison for the savage sexual attack and murder of a barmaid called Diane Sindall – after DNA evidence very belatedly confirmed that another (unknown) man must have been the killer. At the time – this happened in 1986 – Sullivan had been described as 'not the full shilling' and a 'village idiot'. Nowadays, we would say he had learning disabilities. Anyway, he had had convictions for petty theft, and was seen loitering in the area of the murder, carrying a crowbar.
Daily Mirror
18-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
3 major UK miscarriages of justice - twisted confession to unsolved mass murder
Peter Sullivan has had his 1987 conviction for the murder of Diane Sindall quashed, after spending nearly 40 years in prison for the crime - but his case is one of many shocking miscarriages of justice in UK history When Peter Sullivan, 68, learned that he was to be freed from custody after nearly 40 years in prison, he sobbed and covered his mouth. The monumental ruling marked out his case as the longest-running known miscarriage of justice in British history - he had gone to prison aged only 30 years old and spent most of his adult life locked inside. Sullivan was convicted of the murder of 21-year-old Diane Sindall in 1987, but new DNA evidence from the scene that did not match his profile caused the Criminal Case Review Commission to send his case to the Court of Appeal. Merseyside police reopened their investigation into the murder that was so brutal the killer was dubbed 'the Wolfman' and the 'Beast of Birkenhead' - with investigating police saying at the time the injuries inflicted on Diane were "the worst they had ever seen". They have so far eliminated 260 men from the DNA sample, including Diane's partner and family - and are conducting what they called "extensive and painstaking inquiries" in an attempt to find who is responsible for the "frenzied" sexual assault and murder. The KC for the CPS, Duncan Atkinson, said during Sullivan's appeal: "Had this DNA evidence been available at the time a decision was taken to prosecute, it is difficult to see how a decision to prosecute could have been made." "At the time of Diane's murder, DNA testing was very much in its infancy and this vital evidence was not available to the original investigation team," Merseyside police said in a statement about the miscarriage of justice. However, Sullivan's case is by no means the only major miscarriage of justice to have occurred in a crime like this, though his duration in prison is the longest known. The historic moment comes not long after the case of Andrew Malkinson, who like Peter Sullivan, long protested his innocence when he was convicted of rape, and spent 17 years in prison, only for it to be quashed in 2023. Malkinson was also eventually cleared after the testing of DNA evidence that matched another man in the National DNA database. He has since reportedly received a "significant" six-figure sum of compensation from the Ministry of Justice for the miscarriage of justice - something that it seems like Sullivan could also pursue. Here, the Mirror looks back at some of the most significant miscarriages of justice in British history, which no quashed conviction, nor compensation sum, could ever undo. Derek Bentley In 1953, 19-year-old Derek Bentley was hanged under 'joint enterprise' laws for his part in the murder of Police Constable Sidney Miles. Derek had significant learning disabilities - with the mental age of an 11-year-old - and suffered from epilepsy, he was also unable to read or write. His friend Christopher Craig shot and killed the police officer, and just before the murder was committed police witnesses claimed that Derek uttered the words, "Let him have it, Chris". These words could have had a myriad of interpretations, it was argued, for instance, he may have been encouraging his younger friend to commit a crime, as the court interpreted it at the time, or he could have been encouraging him to hand over his weapon. Both Derek and Christopher denied he said "Let him have it" at all. In 1998, Derek's conviction was quashed, because it was unclear whether Derek was taking part in a joint enterprise and because his mental health status had not been included in the trial, which was particularly relevant to how the teen had acted in his police interviews, and whilst on the stand. The case of Derek Bentley was one that had a huge impact on the campaign to end capital punishment in the UK - something that happened in 1965. Few, including the jury that convicted the teenager, wanted the death penalty in his case, with 200 MPs signing a petition to have his sentence reduced - but these attempts to save the youngster did not work. On the day he was executed at Wandsworth Prison, some 5000 protestors stood outside chanting 'Murder'. Birmingham Six The Birmingham Six spent 16 years in prison for a crime they didn't commit - and it is seen by many as one of the worst miscarriages of justice to happen in the UK. Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, and William Power had all moved from Belfast to Birmingham in the hope of finding better employment opportunities, and John Walker had come from Derry. The six Northern Irish men were accused of committing the Birmingham pub bombings of 21 November 1974 - for which the IRA was responsible. Five of the men were not even in the city at the time, but because they were travelling back to Northern Ireland for the funeral of an IRA member they knew - they didn't tell the police where they were going when they were stopped and searched, which ended up counting against them. Their convictions were quashed in 1991 for being "unsafe and unsatisfactory" and the miscarriage of justice they suffered led to the creation of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC). "The overturning of the Birmingham Six's the course of history for the correction of miscarriages of justice in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland," the CCRC has said. 'The CCRC's creation – and the help we have given to hundreds of people who had been wrongly convicted or sentenced – was a lasting legacy of that impactful decision by the Court of Appeal." 21 people were killed in the Birmingham pub bombings, and over 200 injured, but the Birmingham Six were allegedly subjected to police brutality to force confessions and faulty forensic testing. A police officer who was involved in these coercive practices later "confirmed many of the violent tactics" - according to the BBC - which is alleged to have included "conducting mock executions". One of the Birmingham Six, Hugh Callaghan, it was reported in the Guardian, was terrorised with police dogs whilst in custody. "Knowing that he was, as he puts it, 'a nervous individual' and afraid of dogs, the police put Alsatians into Hugh Callaghan's cell. They ordered them to attack him, before restraining them at the last minute. "I still have nightmares about it," he said, now 92, sitting in the peaceful London home he shares with his partner, Adeline. There have been times, she says, when he has woken up three times a night, screaming. If he sees someone with an Alsatian, he crosses the road to avoid it." More than 50 years since the bombings, no one has been brought to justice for what's believed by many to be the largest unsolved mass murder in recent times in Britain. Stephen Downing Stephen Downing served 27 years for murder after being convicted in February 1974 for killing Wendy Sewell. Stephen's was one of the first cases to be looked at by the CCRC and in 2002, the Court of Appeal quashed his conviction on the ground that an eight-hour police interview had been mishandled, with Stephen not properly cautioned and told he was being questioned as a witness, rather than a potential suspect. Not only that but he was denied legal representation during this time, and because this interview was when he produced a confession for the crime - something he later retracted - it didn't hold up. Downing had found Wendy badly beaten after being sexually assaulted in a graveyard, at the time she was still alive, but died due to the injuries two days later. Stephen, then 17, had the reading age of an 11-year-old, and the confession he signed to the attack was "filled with words he did not understand". A modern forensic examination of the weapon also showed, per the BBC, that the convicted man's fingerprints were not present, but there was "a bloody palm print from an unknown person". Stephen was awarded significant compensation for the miscarriage of justice, but investigations by the police have never found an alternative suspect. According to the Guardian, Stephen remains the only suspect for Wendy's murder, and he is "alleged to have made three confessions since his release from prison, including one to his girlfriend recorded on audio tape, and one to his father Ray. But he refused to be interviewed by detectives".
