Double killer's parole hearings should be in public, say Wigan victim's parents

New Parole Board rules have been introduced which mean prisoner hearings can now be in public: but only in exceptional circumstances.

Trevor and Sheila Fairhurst, whose 19-year-old daughter Carly was killed by Darren Pilkington in 2006, believe his circumstances are exceptional enough for him to qualify but are sceptical that they will see it happen.

The Hindley couple were contacted by victim liaison officer from the Ministry of Justice this week informing them of the rule changes, pointing out that public hearings have to be in “the interests of justice” in order to go ahead.

Such applications can be made by a victim, prisoner or the wider public. The threshold for a public hearing is very high and the normal position will be for parole hearings to remain in private.

The Fairhursts see this as a step in the right direction but say they have little confidence in a system which has given Pilkington, who had already served a prison term for killing another man when he ended Carly’s life, more chances than he deserves.

The 40-year-old served his second manslaughter sentence years ago, but has been in and out of jail since for parole breaches and, most recently, from escaping from an open prison.

His latest parole hearing has now been scheduled for February – near the anniversary of Carly’s death.

Mr Fairhurst said: “I think this rule change is a plus and, given Pilkington’s track record which shows an inability to rehabilitate and a continued flouting of the parole system, I think he would be an ideal candidate for one of these public hearings.

"The down side is that we would have to travel down to London for it and then there’s every chance that he might not turn up because he won’t want to look us in the face.

"The truth is that our experience of Pilkington being given endless new chances of freedom after all he has done has left us with no faith in the system whatsoever.

"But if his hearings were in public, the system which keeps releasing him can be better scrutinised.

"We’d want his next hearing in public but we’re not holding our breath.”