‘Excluded from justice’: court prevents family of victim from addressing assailant

Tom Quigley described his brother David as ‘a character, a gentle man and a one-off’. Photograph: Fabio De Paola/The Guardian

The brother of a man who died after being assaulted in his own home has said he has been “excluded from justice” after magistrates barred him from court on the grounds that his presence would put the teenage attacker under “undue stress”.

Tom Quigley called on the Ministry of Justice to ensure bereaved relatives are not excluded from the court process after he was prevented from reading out a victim impact statement detailing his devastation at the lonely death of his older brother, David.