A call has been made for bereaved families to help shape the law to force cowardly killers like the man who murdered Olivia Pratt-Korbel to face their sentencing hearings.
Earlier this year, Thomas Cashman was jailed for 42 years for the murder of nine-year-old Olivia at her home in Dovecot. Instead of facing up to the pain he had inflicted on Olivia’s mum Cheryl and her family, Cashman hid away in his cell refusing to attend his hearing at Manchester Crown Court.
In Parliament, Ian Byrne, Labour MP for West Derby questioned Justice Secretary Alex Chalk MP on the government’s commitment to making offenders like Cashman face justice and if he would meet with Mr Byrne and Cheryl Korbel to put families at the heart of changing legislation. Mr Byrne said: “I recently tabled an early day motion to formally put on record in this House the pain the wilful absence of an offender at a sentencing hearing causes for bereaved families.
