Elle Edwards' killer has reportedly seen his legal aid bill pass £300,000 since her murder.
uncertain
bill → see → murder
Connor Chapman, 25, fatally shot 26-year-old Ms Edwards with a sub-machine gun outside The Lighthouse Pub in Wirral, Merseyside, on Christmas Eve 2022 as part of a gang feud.
asserted
Chapman → shoot → feud
Ms Edwards, an innocent bystander, was shot twice and died while five others suffered injuries.
asserted
others → shoot → injuries
Chapman was arrested and later jailed for life with a minimum of 48 years behind bars while Thomas Waring, who hid the murder weapon, was sentenced to nine years.
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who → arrest → years
A Freedom of Information request submitted by The Sun has now revealed that the duo have benefitted from almost £500,000 in taxpayers' cash while incarcerated.
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duo → submit → cash
Chapman has received £303,421 in legal aid, including bills for a failed appeal against his sentence, and Waring has benefitted from £138,657 to foot his legal bills.
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Waring → receive → bills
It comes after it was revealed that the gunman's accomplice, who also helped to burn out the stolen Mercedes used in the shooting, could be freed this month less than halfway through his sentence.
uncertain
who → come → sentence
Ms Edwards' father Tim, however, pleaded with Andy Burnham to prevent Waring's release and consider making changes to Labour's Early Release Scheme.
asserted
father → plead → Scheme
Elle Edwards, an innocent bystander, was killed when a gunman opened fire outside a Wirral restaurant on Christmas Eve 2022
Connor Chapman, 24, (pictured) was jailed for a minimum of 48 years for her murder
His accomplice Thomas Waring (pictured) was handed a nine-year sentence for his role in the murder
He said: 'It's a massive kick in the teeth.
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It → kill → teeth
I did write to Andy Burnham and I asked him to just look at the criteria that people are going to be under or fit to get the early release and there was no response.
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people → write → release
Obviously the reason why was because they were never going to change it.
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they → go → it
I put that more on the Ministry of Justice because they just won't change, they don't want to change, they're all about number crunching.'
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they → put → crunching
Sir Keir Starmer's Government announced in July 2024 that thousands of prisoners would be released early to combat overcrowding.
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thousands → announce → overcrowding
Mr Burnham went on to give the green light for thousands of killers, thugs and paedophiles to be freed from jail.
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thousands → go → jail
But the new Prime Minister paused the controversial plans last month following a public outcry over the proposed release of two of PC Andrew Harper's killers.
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Minister → pause → killers
Following an urgent review, rapists and the most serious sex offenders will now be excluded from early release.
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rapists → follow → release
The decision to release some prisoners early has already attracted fury from the family of PC Harper, who was dragged behind a car for more than a mile by three teenage thugs trying to steal a quad bike.
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who → release → bike
Justice Secretary Alex Norris has refused to back down on the scheme.
He told the BBC that the government wanted to 'go further' but stated withdrawing the scheme would cause a 'prison capacity crisis'.
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withdrawing → refuse → crisis
Mr Edwards added: 'It just shows that the families, the victims, don't get a say in any of this.
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families → add → this
It just shows they don't care.
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they → show → ?
It's devastating to take.'
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It → take → ?
Undated handout file photo of a generic photo of a Skorpion sub-machine gun, similar to that used in the shooting which killed Elle Edwards
Tim Edwards (pictured with Ms Edwards) said the decision to release the thug who helped his daughter's killer was a 'kick in the teeth'
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who → use → teeth
Liverpool Crown Court heard Chapman went to Waring's house following the shooting and asked him to look after the weapon used in the killing.
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Chapman → hear → killing
Mr Edwards said: 'The gun has never been found.
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gun → say → ?
So what's to stop him coming out and picking that gun up again, there's nothing to stop him doing that, is there?'
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him → stop → that
Mr Burnham acknowledged the 'anger, anxiety and distress' caused to victims by the early-release plans.
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Burnham → acknowledge → plans
He said the exclusion of rapists and the worst paedophiles were 'significant changes' but acknowledged 'there will still be concerns about other offenders having their sentences shortened'.
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sentences → say → rapists
The Prime Minister said he had 'wanted to go further' but added: 'It's not possible without the prison system reaching capacity and collapsing, which would put public safety at much greater risk.'
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: 'Andy Burnham wants a round of applause for agreeing not to release rapists and child sex offenders.
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Burnham → say → rapists
He's not getting one.
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He → get → one
Killers, violent offenders, men who have terrorised their partners and more will all still walk out of prison in October thanks to Labour's early release scheme.
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who → terrorise → scheme
Yet again victims are learning their fate from press releases.
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victims → learn → releases
The victims of these horrific crimes have suffered weeks of uncertainty and fear.
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victims → suffer → uncertainty
They deserve so much better.'
Martin Jones, HM Chief Inspector of Probation, told BBC Radio 4's PM programme that there 'is a real risk that things will go wrong' if more clarity isn't provided over the government's early release scheme.
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clarity → tell → scheme
He said: 'The probation service needs time to plan for those releases.
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service → say → releases
And I can't overstate how important it is that the probation service has taken the steps necessary to ensure that we know where people will be living after they leave prison, what conditions are in place, what protections need to be in place in relation to, for example, drug treatment [and] mental health treatment.
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protections → overstate → treatment
So that's the work that at the moment is on pause, but it's absolutely so important the probation service has that clarity so that it can ensure that the necessary plans are in place.
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plans → have → place
And unless we get that [clarity], I think there is a real risk that things will go wrong.'
asserted
things → get → clarity
The Aporia
