STORY: "Susan May: Murder case woman dies before appeal ruling," published by BBC News (Manchester) on November 2, 2013.
GIST: "A woman who hoped new evidence could overturn her murder conviction has died, weeks before a decision on whether to grant her an appeal. Susan May, 68, spent 12 years in prison after being convicted of murdering her aunt Hilda Marchbank at her home in Royton, Greater Manchester in 1993. A new report stated "bloody handprints" said to link her to the crime were not made in blood. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) was considering a third appeal. The report by fingerprint expert Arie Zeelenberg, described by Ms May last month as "all-important", was passed to the body in April. Ms May had been suffering a recurrence of cancer and her supporters had urged the CCRC to prioritise her case, but she died on Wednesday night. Campaigner Geoff Goodwin said: "Susan fought every day for 20 years to see justice for her aunt and herself. "The wheels of justice move very slowly when you're fighting the system, and she will now not hear a court declare her conviction quashed. "But we will keep going and we're determined to make sure everyone knows she's innocent.".........Ms May, who was the first person in the UK to be released at her earliest parole date without admitting guilt, has had two failed appeals. The campaign to clear her name is backed by 100 MPs and peers. Fingerprint analyst Mr Zeelenberg, former head of the Dutch national police fingerprint service, examined previously unseen high resolution photographs of the marks on the wall said by the prosecution to be "bloodstained handprints". His report concludes: "There is no evidence that the finger marks... attributed to Susan May were placed in blood. "In fact there is overwhelming evidence that they were not comprised of blood but instead of sweat and a minor residue of another unknown substance."
GIST: "A woman who hoped new evidence could overturn her murder conviction has died, weeks before a decision on whether to grant her an appeal. Susan May, 68, spent 12 years in prison after being convicted of murdering her aunt Hilda Marchbank at her home in Royton, Greater Manchester in 1993. A new report stated "bloody handprints" said to link her to the crime were not made in blood. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) was considering a third appeal. The report by fingerprint expert Arie Zeelenberg, described by Ms May last month as "all-important", was passed to the body in April. Ms May had been suffering a recurrence of cancer and her supporters had urged the CCRC to prioritise her case, but she died on Wednesday night. Campaigner Geoff Goodwin said: "Susan fought every day for 20 years to see justice for her aunt and herself. "The wheels of justice move very slowly when you're fighting the system, and she will now not hear a court declare her conviction quashed. "But we will keep going and we're determined to make sure everyone knows she's innocent.".........Ms May, who was the first person in the UK to be released at her earliest parole date without admitting guilt, has had two failed appeals. The campaign to clear her name is backed by 100 MPs and peers. Fingerprint analyst Mr Zeelenberg, former head of the Dutch national police fingerprint service, examined previously unseen high resolution photographs of the marks on the wall said by the prosecution to be "bloodstained handprints". His report concludes: "There is no evidence that the finger marks... attributed to Susan May were placed in blood. "In fact there is overwhelming evidence that they were not comprised of blood but instead of sweat and a minor residue of another unknown substance."
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-24788242
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.
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