Dad of girl killed in speedboat horror blasts killer Jack Shepherd for launching an appeal while on the run
Graham Brown slams Jack Shepherd for 'mocking justice' as the 30-year-old has managed to lodge papers at the Court of Appeal while abroad
THE dad of a girl killed in a speedboat horror slammed her killer last night for launching an appeal while on the run.
Graham Brown, 52, hit out as it emerged fugitive Jack Shepherd had launched the bid to overturn his conviction.
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Shepherd, 30, skipped his manslaughter trial over the death of date Charlotte Brown, 24, who died when his ageing boat flipped at high speed on London’s River Thames.
He was jailed for six years in his absence last month, yet remains at large despite a police manhunt and a £10,000 Sun reward to help catch him.
But Shepherd is believed to have still been able to instruct lawyers to lodge papers at the Court of Appeal from abroad.
He has also demanded judges slash his term, even though he hasn’t entered jail. The grounds for his appeal are not known.
Graham, of Sidcup, Kent, said: “He’s mocking justice and clearly thinks he has nothing to lose.
";People will rightly ask why a convicted criminal’s rights should outweigh Charlotte’s.
“Shepherd hasn’t done a day of his sentence, but he’s apparently been able to put together an appeal while on the run.
The Sun Says
SPEEDBOAT killer Jack Shepherd is making a mockery of our justice system. His appeal must not be heard.
It is jaw-dropping that this arrogant idiot could flee before his manslaughter trial, then appeal against conviction from some unknown foreign bolthole.
No court should hear it. It would give any criminal a licence to do the same.
Shepherd’s lawyers may not have a duty to divulge his whereabouts. But it would be morally wrong not to tell him to return to face the music. They should not represent him until he does.
This coward killed a woman through drunken negligence. Now he sickeningly aims to cheat her family of justice.
"It’s a great unfairness but I’m confident he’ll face justice soon.”
Shepherd, of Paddington, central London, went on the run just before his Old Bailey trial. It later emerged he had been instructing lawyers from abroad.
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MOST READ IN NEWS
Lawyers protect him
By Adam Bennett
JACK Shepherd will be granted an appeal only under “extreme exceptional circumstances”.
He was in intermittent contact with counsel throughout the trial and his fate now lies with a Court of Appeal judge who will decide whether his appeal will be allowed to go ahead.
For an on-the-run criminal to appeal his conviction is almost unheard of in British law. The fugitive’s whereabouts are protected by his lawyers, Tuckers Solicitors, who have a professional duty of confidentiality.
To appeal, the defence counsel must believe there was a serious error of law during trial which could undermine the conviction.
Andrew Katzen, partner at criminal law firm Hickman and Rose, said: “This is pretty unusual.
“The court of appeal will only deal with it where there have been exceptional circumstances.”
But cops had no access to those exchanges and have been barred from probing any details of his contact with lawyers.
Scotland Yard is now working with the National Crime Agency to bring Shepherd to justice.
Charlotte, of Clacton, Essex, died soon after meeting web designer Shepherd in 2015. He was drinking before the crash.
- CHARLOTTE’S family are campaigning for an overhaul of waterways laws. Sign the petition at
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