Lawrence Bierton, a triple murderer, has been sentenced to a whole-life order at Nottingham Crown Court for the murder of his neighbour, Pauline Quinn. Quinn, 73, was found in her home in Worksop with 29 separate injuries to her head and face in November 2021. Bierton had been released on licence for the second time in May 2020, 18 months after serving a sentence for killing two elderly sisters and was moved to Rayton Spur. Police had expressed their concerns about Bierton’s move to the area due to the risk posed to elderly and vulnerable people.
Bierton, an alcoholic, entered Mrs. Quinn’s home after drinking vodka, rum, and taking crack cocaine and opioids. The court had heard that Quinn had refused to give him money for alcohol. Bierton used “extraordinary levels of violence” during all three of the murders, showing each of his victims “no mercy”. The judge noted that there were “extremely worrying parallels” between the previous two murders and the killing of Mrs. Quinn. In each case, the victim was elderly, suffered physical disabilities, and knew the perpetrator.
The decision to approve Bierton’s move to Rayton Spur was labelled a “significant mistake” by Mr. Justice Pepperall and was described as “flawed” by Saika Jabeen, head of the Nottinghamshire Probation Delivery Unit. Bierton was given a whole-life order, meaning he will never be released from prison, except in exceptional compassionate circumstances.
The case has highlighted concerns over the decision-making process surrounding the release of criminals on licence and how these individuals are monitored once they are released. The court heard that police had raised concerns about Bierton’s move to the area but that these concerns were ignored. The case has sparked a debate over whether the current system for managing offenders on licence is fit for purpose and whether more needs to be done to protect communities from dangerous criminals.
The Quinn family has called for a review of the probation service and the release of violent offenders on licence in light of Bierton’s case. The family has said that they hope the case will lead to changes in the way these individuals are managed and monitored and that lessons will be learned from Bierton’s case so that no other family has to go through what they have endured
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