Layla Wright, from Childwall, has investigated a Wigan murder case. The 29-year-old journalist, presenter and documentary maker is fronting a new BBC documentary that tells the story of a shocking murder case. She previously presented the BBC Three documentary, America's New Female Right, where she travelled to the USA to meet influencer women posting antifeminist and other offensive content online. This time, Layla's investigation took place closer to home.
New Documentary Explores Complex Case
New documentary Killer Couple: Love on Trial lands on iPlayer and YouTube today. The documentary investigates the conviction of a woman serving a life sentence for murder, despite being nearly a hundred miles away from the crime scene. Layla has partnered with the BBC to ask the question: "How do you get 30 years in prison for a murder… when you were 100 miles away from the scene of the crime?"
In 2019, Rachel Fulstow, from York, went on a Tinder date with Liam Smith, an electrician from Wigan. They spent the night together and apart from a few messages after, they never saw each other again. Four years later, Rachel was standing in the dock, accused of his murder. Beside her was her new boyfriend, Michael Hillier, the man who admitted pulling the trigger, as part of a plan he said he and Rachel came up with. The court heard the couple plotted to kill Mr Smith just a few yards from his home on Kilburn Drive, Shevington in November 2022.
Investigating Joint Enterprise Law
Layla, a former Radio City journalist and now a documentary maker, investigated how someone can be sentenced to life for a murder they didn't physically commit. Behind the headlines of the "Killer Couple" case, Layla uncovered the chain of events that ended in a brutal killing in Wigan, travelling across the country and speaking to people on different sides of the story. Speaking to the ECHO about why she decided to investigate the case, Layla said: "I was really interested in women in prison and the women's justice system. I was looking at women who were convicted of murder and I came across this story where Rachel was in prison for 30 years. I couldn't believe it, I couldn't get my head around that you could be in prison for 30 years, but you provably weren't at the scene of the crime. Someone else admitted to doing it."
She added: "This is when I came across the law of joint enterprise, when more than one person can be convicted of the same crime, despite having different roles in the murder. I looked into it more and spoke to people that were close to the story." Layla began to ask questions, as she discovered more women who had been sent to prison across the UK, despite not being at the scene of the crime.
Fast-Paced Documentary
Viewers can expect a fast-paced 40 minute documentary, as Layla spoke to as many people as she could while gathering documents and evidence, including Rachel's 200-page diary entry. Layla said: "It's a fast-paced film, there's quite a lot to take in. I never want to do classic true crime, it's more about what conversations we can bring from telling this story. It's about finding out why people do the things they do. People will watch this film and have different opinions, but for me it was really interesting to look into it myself."
"Outside of this film, there is an ongoing debate around joint enterprise law. As a journalist, it's never my job to get involved in these conversations, but it's important to ask questions because this is a really important story that needs to be told." "Rachel and her boyfriend met on a dating app, a few years later they were both in prison for actions he admitted to doing. People can take it wherever they want to go, but for me it's about starting a conversation."
From Childwall to Documentary Maker
Layla grew up in Childwall but now lives in London, after moving to the capital in her early 20s when she was mentored by journalist and TV star, Louis Theroux. The 29-year-old is following in the footsteps of some of the UK's best documentary-makers, including Stacey Dooley. Layla said: "I used to watch Stacey Dooley on telly and she was a young, cool, working class girl. There's more storytellers coming through on TV. The more Scousers we can get the better."
The aspiring journalist began working at Radio City before she went on to study at the University of Liverpool. Layla has remained true to her Merseyside roots, and feels it's a great privilege to investigate cases closer to home, as well as those across the Atlantic. Layla said: "As Scousers, we're born storytellers but we're also born with this fighting sense of justice. I want to take on stories that I think are important which will start conversations. It's so easy to judge things from outside, but actually if we really immerse ourselves in what happened, we question if things are as straightforward as they might seem."
Killer Couple: Love on Trial is available to watch on BBC iPlayer and YouTube.
