A killer who bludgeoned his wife to death with a hammer has been deemed not fit for release from prison, following a Parole Board review.
Robert Brown was sentenced to 24 years for manslaughter and a further two years for obstructing a coroner after killing Joanna Simpson, 46, with a claw hammer in Ascot, Berkshire. The attack occurred within earshot of their two children, then aged nine and ten. Brown buried her body in a pre-dug grave in Windsor Great Park before confessing to police the following day.
The Parole Board had considered freeing Brown, but the decision was scrapped. Instead, the former pilot will remain in custody until 2036, or until the board is satisfied he no longer poses a risk.
Joanna's family welcomed the decision. Her mother, Diana Parkes CBE, said: "I am incredibly relieved that the Parole Board have decided not to release Robert Brown. We have all lived with the fear that this might not be the case but thank goodness it was unanimously agreed he should not be released."
She added: "My daughter would have been 62 last Wednesday May 6, and, of course, we remember her as the beautiful and vivacious woman she was at 46. That is how I will always remember her. Her children have grown to be the most wonderful young people. They have been my salvation over the years and I feel sure I have been theirs."
"How I wished I could have told Jo, as life has continued without her, the events that have happened in their lives such as the every day things in life, doing well at school, going to university gaining degrees, finding jobs and also partners. I have every faith that they owe their tenacity and strength to the early years spent with their mother who adored them as indeed I do."
Brown was found not guilty of murder after a jury was told the couple's bitter divorce proceedings had put him under great stress. He was jailed in 2011 for Joanna's manslaughter and a further two years for obstructing a coroner.
The mum's close friend, Hetti Barkworth-Nanton CBE, said: "I am profoundly relieved by the Parole Board's decision. Since the day Robert Brown was given a sentence that would have led to his automatic release in 2023, we have all lived under a cloud of fear - a fear that today, at last, has been lifted."
"This outcome is not accidental. It is the result of our preparedness to campaign, the extraordinary support of the public and the media, the willingness of politicians to listen, the scrutiny shown by the Ministry of Justice in their review of this case, and the independent rigour of the Parole Board's investigation. Each played a vital role in ensuring that public protection, not process, determined the outcome."
The family and friends had campaigned for three years to ensure the dangerous killer was not automatically released and to put public safety first. Brown, from Ascot, Berkshire, dispensed with his legal team before the hearing and chose not to attend.
