Triple killer given whole life order for 'senseless' murder of neighbour

A triple killer has been given a whole-life order for murdering his elderly neighbour after being wrongly housed next to her while on licence.

Lawrence Bierton will spend the rest of his life in prison after bludgeoning 73-year-old Pauline Quinn to death with her coffee table at her home in Rayton Spur, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, on November 9 2021.

Bierton, 63, had been given accommodation in Rayton Spur while on licence from a life sentence for murdering two elderly sisters in 1995, a decision that was described by a Probation Service representative as "incorrect" in court and labelled a "significant mistake" by the judge, Mr Justice Pepperall.

The defendant was found guilty of Ms Quinn's murder after a two-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court, with the judge describing his third killing as "senseless as it was brutal".

Handing Bierton a whole-life order on Wednesday, the first to be issued at the court since 2005, Mr Justice Pepperall said: "You have been found guilty of the senseless and brutal murder of three elderly and disabled women in their own homes.

"You showed each of the victims no mercy.

"(These were) sustained attacks in which you used extraordinary levels of violence.

"I am left in no doubt whatsoever that you must never again be given the opportunity to walk the streets.

"The only just sentence in this case is that you should remain in prison for the rest of your life."

Bierton was jailed for life at Sheffield Crown Court in 1996 for the killings of Aileen Dudill, 79, and Elsie Gregory, 73, in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, the previous year.

The pair were bludgeoned and suffocated by Bierton and a co-defendant before their bodies were set on fire.

He was released on life licence in December 2017 but recalled to prison in July 2018 due to what prosecutor John Cammegh KC told jurors in the 2023 trial were "repeated failures to address his behaviour".

He was released a second time in May 2020, moving to Rayton Spur six months later.

A so-called "alcohol tag" to monitor Bierton was removed eight months before Ms Quinn's death after he complained of swelling in his legs.

The Probation Service has said that a serious case review into Bierton's case has been completed with findings to be shared with Ms Quinn's family, but that these would not be shared publicly.

In court, the judge said it was a "significant mistake" for Bierton to be allowed to stay at Rayton Spur, a complex for elderly and vulnerable people.

Saika Jabeen, head of the Nottinghamshire county probation delivery unit, told the judge that Bierton's behaviour on his second release "appeared markedly improved", but said there were also unsubstantiated links to "Mamba (a synthetic cannabinoid) use and possible benefit fraud".

She said that "it was not appropriate for him (Bierton) to have been approved housing" in the complex, adding that the decision was "incorrect" and that a second, serious further offence review was also ongoing.

She also said that there was now "greater scrutiny" of accommodation decisions to ensure that decisions were "defensible".

She added that senior managers would apologise to the family on behalf of the Probation Service for the "serious oversights" in the case.

In his sentencing remarks, the judge said: "That decision (to house Bierton at Rayton Spur) was flawed and you should not have been housed among elderly and vulnerable residents.

"Ms Quinn was entitled to expect better, and the system plainly failed her."

Jurors took less than an hour to convict Bierton on Thursday after hearing he left Ms Quinn with 29 separate injuries, striking her 10 times to the head, resulting in a fractured skull and brain damage.

Bierton, an alcoholic, had asked Ms Quinn for money for alcohol at around 4pm on the day of the killing, having drunk vodka and rum and taken crack cocaine and Subutex, an opioid, that morning.

After she refused, he pushed her to the floor, beginning the fatal attack which prosecutors said was sparked by a fear of returning to prison over his substance misuse.

Ms Quinn, who lived alone, had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and walked with a stick, was described as "defenceless" by prosecutors.

She was able to pull a red emergency cord in her home, which recorded audio of Bierton repeatedly striking her with the coffee table.

Audio of the attack on Ms Quinn was played several times to jurors, two of whom returned to watch the sentencing.

"Brutal and Horrific"

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Ms Quinn's daughter, Lisa Rummery, urged the judge to make the "right choice" by imposing a whole life order for the murder of a "much-loved mother, sister and grandmother".

She said: "In a brutal and horrific moment he destroyed so many lives in a matter of seconds, and has left me in constant pain.

"I don't believe there is a punishment that could ever compare to what Bierton has caused with his cruelty.

"He stole her life and ruined ours in the process.

"He is a monster. He took our mum's life and he deserves to be punished for the crimes he has committed."

Prosecutor John Cammegh KC said on Wednesday that Ms Quinn's "sustained and merciless" murder bore "striking similarities" to that of Ms Dudill and Ms Gregory.

He submitted that the earlier murders "illustrated the defendant's propensity to inflict brutal and extreme violence upon vulnerable and elderly women" and that "the savage murder of Pauline Quinn merits a whole life order".

Addressing Bierton, Mr Justice Pepperall said: "I am satisfied so that I am sure that you used severe force, lifting your weapon high above your head, repeatedly smashing it into Ms Quinn's skull with as much force as you could muster.

"There is no doubt on the evidence that you intended to kill your victim.

"You callously considered the need and location for further blows in order to ensure that your victim was dead."

Bierton accepted being responsible for the killing but had denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility, owing to his alcohol dependency.

His barristers claimed this constituted a "mental abnormality" which would have caused alcohol withdrawal symptoms and thus have prevented him from thinking rationally.

But he was seen calmly driving away in Ms Quinn's car after the murder, later returning to the scene to remove the remnants of the bloodstained coffee table in a plastic bag.

On Wednesday, his barrister, Mark McKone KC, said that Bierton wished to become a teacher in prison.

He said: "He recognises the impact his offending has had on many people.

"He knows he can't in any way compensate for what he has done but wants to spend the remainder of his life doing some good."

Bierton sat silently throughout the hearing and showed no emotion as he was taken down.

In a statement on X, Worksop MP Brendan Clarke Smith said:

"Following today’s sentencing, Lawrence Bierton will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Had he still been behind bars for his previous crimes or dealt with properly upon his release, then the tragic murder of Mrs Quinn would have been prevented.

"To house a convicted double killer in an area with elderly and vulnerable residents is more than just negligent - it is unforgivable.

"Justice can never truly be served when a person’s life has been taken, but this sentence will mean Bierton is never free to commit these crimes in our community, or indeed anywhere else, again.

"I am appalled at what I have heard from both the Probation Service and East Midlands Ambulance Service and there are clear failings on multiple levels. Whilst this provides the community and the family of Mrs Quinn with some answers, it is now important that all of the information related to this tragedy is fully disclosed.

"This should include why warnings to the relevant authorities from neighbours and concerned members of the public over Bierton’s behaviour weren’t acted upon prior to the crime being committed.

"I am therefore calling for a full public inquiry into the events leading up to this horrific crime and will be raising this case at the highest level to make sure lessons can be learnt and this can never happen again."