Olivia Pratt-Korbel’s mum has called for a new law to ensure convicted killers face the family and turn up for their sentencing.
Nine-year-old Olivia was killed in her own home by drug dealer Thomas Cashman, 34, in August last year.
Her mum, Cheryl Korbel, 48, said Cashman had taken “the core” of their family when he shot Olivia while trying to kill another man.
Despite overwhelming evidence and CCTV footage, he denied any wrongdoing and dragged the family through a four-week trial in March.
But the cowardly killer refused to even show up to hear his sentence and the family’s victim impact statements after he was found guilty of killing Olivia in Dovecot, Liverpool.
Cheryl and more than a dozen of Olivia’s friends and family hit the streets of Liverpool yesterday calling people to sign a petition backing new legislation to ensure all offenders face full justice in court.
Cheryl said: “The pain he has put us through, we’ve lost Olivia, she was the core of the family.
“But whether that makes any difference to him, I’m not sure. The law needs changing so other families don’t have to go through the same thing, so they get the chance to tell these offenders the pain they have caused.
“There’s so much that goes into those impact statements and it is for the offenders to listen to them and understand what they have actually done and the grief they have left the family with.”
Speaking about the pain of reliving Olivia’s murder during the trial, Cheryl said: “It’s a life sentence for us as a family, you never get closure, and then for him to not turn up was a punch in the stomach.”
Cheryl’s sister, Antonia, added: “He had been found guilty and it was like he still had that bit of power.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak refused to commit to passing Olivia’s law before the next election, but Labour leader Keir Starmer gave firm backing to the campaign in April. He said: “The unimaginable agony that Olivia’s family now carry can’t be erased.
“But we can honour Olivia’s memory, and her family’s courage, by establishing a change in the law.
“While the family bravely went to court for Olivia, and for justice, her killer was allowed to hide away.
“This is a gap in the system and one I’m determined to see closed.”
Cheryl, who was also injured in the shooting, now hopes to set up a foundation in Olivia’s name to end the scourge of gun crime on UK streets.
She said: “She is still here, she may not have a voice but we are her voice.”
Earlier this year, the Mirror launched the Face Justice campaign to call for a change in the law to force killers to face their victims’ families.
