Pitchfork released from jail
RELEASE UNDER STRICT LICENCE CONDITIONS – BUT FAMILY OF VICTIM CONDEMN THE DECISION
A MAN who raped and murdered two 15-year-old girls in the 1980s walked free from prison yesterday after an appeal to keep him locked up was rejected.
Colin Pitchfork was the first person to be convicted using DNA evidence and was jailed for 30 years – reduced to 28 years on appeal – for killing Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth.
Earlier this year, the Parole Board said it was satisfied Pitchfork, who became eligible for parole in 2015, was safe for release.
However, the decision was challenged by the government. Justice Secretary Robert Buckland asked for the case to be looked at again on the basis that the decision to release Pitchfork was irrational.
The Parole Board rejected the challenge.
It is understood Pitchfork, 61, will be subject to 36 licence conditions – some of the strictest ever set.
He will also have to wear an electronic tag, face restrictions on using the internet and be banned from going near relatives of his victims.
The Ministry of Justice said that if Pitchfork breaches any of the 36 licence conditions he will be recalled to prison.
A spokesman said: “Our heartfelt sympathies remain with the families of Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth following the independent Parole Board’s decision to release Colin Pitchfork.
“Public safety is our top priority, which is why he will be subject to some of the strictest licence condi
‘He should not be breathing same air as us’
tions ever set and remain under supervision for the rest of his life. “If he breaches these conditions, he faces an immediate return to prison”
On November 22, 1983, Lynda Mann’s body was found on a deserted footpath in the Narborough area.
She had been raped and strangled by Pitchfork, who was then working at a bakery. Three years later on August 2, 1986, Dawn Ashworth’s body was found in a wooded area near a footpath called Ten Pound Lane in the same area.
DNA profiling confirmed the girls had been killed by the same man and, in 1987, one of Pitchfork’s colleagues revealed to fellow workers that he had taken a blood test while masquerading as Pitchfork, who had told him he wanted to avoid being harassed by police because of prior convictions for indecent exposure.
THE devastated mum of one of Colin Pitchfork’s victims has spoken out after the killer’s release from prison, writes Finvola Dunphy.
Barbra Ashworth, mother of Pitchfork’s second victim, Dawn, said: “Well, it was on the books that he was going to be released, but I don’t think he should be breathing the same air as us.”
Multiple bids to keep the murderer behind bars failed.
Barbra said: “It goes without saying that life should have meant life in his case, because he said he was guilty of the offences, the murders of both the girls… and he did a lot more besides.”
Pitchfork also raped and murdered Lynda Mann, who was also 15 at the time.
Asked if she was surprised Pitchfork had become eligible for release, Ms Ashworth said: “Yes, I think so.
“They did say that if it had been done today he wouldn’t have been let out.
“But that doesn’t excuse anything. I don’t have my daughter back or any of the hopes and dreams that she had in her life.
“She was my only daughter and you live your life through them and their future – but that was taken away.”
South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa has said he was “extremely saddened and disappointed” at the convicted killer’s release.
Mr Costa, who represents the constituency which includes the villages where Lynda and Dawn lived, campaigned against Pitchfork’s release and had pleaded with Justice Secretary Robert Buckland to intervene and demand that the Parole Board reconsidered its decision.
He said: “I am extremely saddened and deeply disappointed that the convicted child rapist and killer Colin Pitchfork has been released from prison.
“Since I was first elected MP for South Leicestershire, where
He will be subject to some of the strictest licence conditions ever set
Ministry of Justice spokesman
Pitchfork’s heinous crimes took place, I have worked tirelessly on behalf of my constituents and countless others to oppose his release.
“While I respect the Parole Board’s decision to reject the government’s challenge against his release, I do not agree with it.
“In my view, Pitchfork still presents a very real danger to the public.”
The MP was successful in lobbying the government to challenge the Parole Board’s initial decision to release the killer under the reconsideration mechanism that allows parole decisions to be formally reviewed if the decision to release a prisoner was viewed to be irrational or unreasonable.
However, senior Parole Board judge His Honour Michael Topolski QC, ruled: “A highly experienced and expert panel comprising of two judicial and one psychologist member had in essence two questions to decide.
“First, did the respondent need to remain in prison to complete any further offending work and, secondly, could his risk be safely managed in the community? “I do not consider that the decision was irrational and accordingly, with my thanks to the parties for their submissions, the application for reconsideration is refused.”
Mr Costa said: “This case has made clear that the Parole Board’s opaque practices and processes must be reformed, and the system must work better for victims and their families.
“I very much look forward to helping to shape the system for the better in the government’s forthcoming root-and-branch review of the Parole Board. “Questions will of course remain as to whether someone who has committed such heinous crimes should ever be released, in cases such as these where two innocent girls were murdered in the most horrendous fashion, life should simply mean life. “My thoughts today, as ever, are with the families of Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth.”
This case has made clear the Parole Board’s opaque practices and processes must be reformed Alberto Costa, right