In the case of murder of Leanne Tiernan, offender had attacked the victim, a 16-year-old girl who was unknown to him, after lying in wait by an unlit wooded path. He had forced her to go to his house, where he sexually assaulted and strangled her, and put her body in a freezer before eventually burying it. The judge had recommended a minimum term of 25 years and the Lord Chief Justice one of 20 years. However, before the secretary of state had made his decision, the Criminal Justice Act 2003 s.269 entered into force. In the meantime, the offender pleaded guilty to two earlier rapes, for which he was sentenced to life imprisonment.
In November 2000, 16-year-old Leanne Tiernan was reported missing following a Christmas shopping trip with a close friend. A vast search operation ensued, involving the examination of hundreds of houses and gardens, the combing of nearby moorlands, and an underwater and air search in addition to this. However it was not until August 2001 that the body was found in Lindley Woods in West Yorkshire by a dog-walker. The teenager was discovered wrapped in bin liners part-buried, with a plastic bag over her head fastened with a dog collar and with a scarf and cable tie around her neck, and cable ties holding her wrists together. The …show more content…
Upon examination of hairs found on the victim’s body they were established to be dog hairs that scientists in Texas produced a partial dog DNA profile. Unfortunately Taylor’s dog had passed away since the disappearance of the victim, so the evidence could not be used. Fortunately other hairs found on the scarf tied around the victim’s neck did prove to be of more use. Although they were not particularly suitable for DNA profiling due to insufficient DNA in the hair roots, it was possible to perform mitochondrial DNA testing, proving to be a match to John
In November 2000, 16-year-old Leanne Tiernan was reported missing following a Christmas shopping trip with a close friend. A vast search operation ensued, involving the examination of hundreds of houses and gardens, the combing of nearby moorlands, and an underwater and air search in addition to this. However it was not until August 2001 that the body was found in Lindley Woods in West Yorkshire by a dog-walker. The teenager was discovered wrapped in bin liners part-buried, with a plastic bag over her head fastened with a dog collar and with a scarf and cable tie around her neck, and cable ties holding her wrists together. The …show more content…
Upon examination of hairs found on the victim’s body they were established to be dog hairs that scientists in Texas produced a partial dog DNA profile. Unfortunately Taylor’s dog had passed away since the disappearance of the victim, so the evidence could not be used. Fortunately other hairs found on the scarf tied around the victim’s neck did prove to be of more use. Although they were not particularly suitable for DNA profiling due to insufficient DNA in the hair roots, it was possible to perform mitochondrial DNA testing, proving to be a match to John