Hazel Stewart: Double murderer will not be allowed to appeal sentence
"No injustice arises in refusing to reopen this long-concluded appeal on these facts." Dame Siobhan said."This was a double murder of spouses in the cruellest of circumstances."Stewart is in prison for murdering her husband Trevor Buchanan, 32, and Howell's 31-year-old wife Lesley Howell in 1991.Brendan Kelly KC, acting on her behalf, had told the court new evidence had come to light from a psychiatrist who believed Stewart had been suffering from depression and PTSD at the time of the murders of Mr Buchanan and Mrs Howell.He argued that at the time of Stewart's sentencing in 2011 the issue of coercive control was not fully understood, in particular in the context of mental health.He suggested had it been understood at the time of Stewart's sentencing, the new evidence would have been admissible.But Philip Henry KC, on behalf of the Public Prosecution Service, insisted there was no jurisdiction for the court to hear the case because Stewart previously abandoned her appeal.He also repeatedly questioned the strength of the new diagnosis, obtained more than 30 years after the killings.Six reports from other psychiatrists who examined Stewart at earlier stages raised no concerns about mental illness at the time of the killings.
What happened to the victims?
Both victims were found in a fume-filled garage in Castlerock, Co Londonderry.Police originally believed the deaths were the result of a suicide pact after they discovered their partners were having an extra-marital affair.Instead, they had been drugged and murdered before their bodies were arranged to make it look like they had taken their own lives.It took nearly two decades for the truth to emerge when Howell suddenly confessed to both killings.He was subsequently sentenced to a minimum of 21 years in prison.Howell also implicated his former lover in the plot and gave evidence against her at her trial.During the trial, the court heard Howell had planned and carried out the killings and Stewart had facilitated them by drugging her husband, allowing Howell into her house and disposing of a hose pipe used in the murder.In March 2011 Stewart was unanimously convicted of both killings by a jury at Coleraine Crown Court.
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an hour ago
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Gemma recalled: 'I screamed at him to leave and he wrapped both his hands around my neck. As he squeezed tightly, I thought I was going to die. 'Looking at his face, his eyes were black with rage.' Thankfully, Gemma managed to kick Grundy off her. Afterwards, he pretended to strangle himself with a dog lead. Gemma recalled how Grundy's manipulation led her to forgive his attacks as he played the victim. 'He always threatened to kill himself to make me feel sorry for him,' she said. 'I was in such a cycle of abuse I didn't know how to break it.' Two months later in October 2022, Grundy struck again when he shoved Gemma across the living room. This time, she was able to call the police, and two officers turned up at her home to arrest Grundy. However, Gemma explained she decided not to press charges against her abusive partner, hoping a night in a cell would 'sort him out'. Sadly, Grundy's violent streak continued to rear his head, and he attacked her once more in April 2023 when they argued. Fearing for her safety, Gemma once again locked herself in a room with her dogs, where she stayed for several hours. She was so frightened to come out that she was forced to urinate in a bin. Three months later, Grundy once again lashed out at his partner - but this time, the attack was caught on Gemma's home CCTV system. The horrifying footage, captured in the summer of 2023, shows Grundy headbutting his partner before going to the kitchen and returning with a knife. Gemma recalled: 'He held it to his neck and threatened to slit his throat. Started following me around with it. I begged him not to do it.' Thankfully, Gemma managed to alert a neighbour, who called the police. Grundy was arrested and bailed on the condition he would not contact Gemma. But it wasn't long before he breached his conditions and flooded Gemma with messages begging her to take him back. She said: 'When I didn't respond, he threatened to kill himself and called me a 'fat c*nt'. It was awful. I was terrified he'd come and finish me off.' At the end of December 2023, Gemma finally revealed all of Grundy's abuse to the police, handing over her home footage that was used as evidence against him. The following month he was remanded. In November last year, at Newcastle Crown Court, he admitted non-fatal strangulation, ABH, harassment and two common assault charges. He was sentenced to 14 months. Gemma attended his sentencing, bravely reading her victim impact statement. In the emotional letter, as reported by the Newcastle Chronicle, she said she 'loved this man more than anyone on earth' and described him as her 'best friend'. 'I so desperately wanted to save him,' she admitted. She also recalled the terror of living through Grundy's attacks: 'Not being able to breathe properly with both hands gripped tightly around my neck, a look of complete rage and venom in his eyes.' Speaking months on from Grundy's sentencing, Gemma said: 'I'm relieved he got time behind bars for what he did. 'Now I'm using my voice to help others and sharing my experience on social media. 'A girl messaged me the other night to say she had recently got out a relationship and she was thinking of taking him back but she's been watching my videos and it's given her strength. 'I could let that horrible experience ruin my life or I could turn it into something positive. So I choose the latter.'
