Name: Claremont killer Bradley Edwards gets life sentence for murder of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon - ABC News
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Claremont killer Bradley Edwards gets life sentence for murder of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon - ABC News

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Claremont killer Bradley Edwards gets life sentence for murder of Jane Rimmer and Ciara GlennonShareClaremont killer Bradley Edwards has been told he will most likely die in jail as he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the wilful murders of two young women in a notorious case that shocked the city of Perth.Spontaneous applause broke out in the public gallery as WA Supreme Court Justice Stephen Hall sentenced Edwards to a minimum of 40 years behind bars for the murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon in the mid 1990s, bringing an end to one of the darkest chapters in the state's history."I recognise that there is a high likelihood that you will die in prison," Justice Hall said as he delivered the verdict."You were a dangerous predator who sought out vulnerable young women and attacked them for your own gratification."You targeted unsuspecting women who were usually completely unknown to you. "Your actions were premeditated, executed with pitiless determination and you were remorseless in your disregard for the pain and suffering that you caused."It is the longest non-parole period ever handed out by a WA court. Justice Hall said Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon had loving families, good jobs and had much to live for. "By your actions, you robbed [the victims] of their lives, their hopes, their dreams and the dreams others had for them," he said."For parents, the death of a child is always an unspeakable tragedy."To have a child taken and killed in the prime of their life is every parent's worst nightmare … [and the] effects are profound and long lasting."The sentencing of Edwards marks the end of a seven-month criminal trial — thought to be the state's longest and most expensive ever—that began in November last year and spanned hundreds of witnesses, thousands of exhibits and an entire floor of the public prosecutor's offices to accommodate the huge volume of evidence amassed. Edwards, 52, murdered Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon in 1996 and 1997 after snatching them from the streets of Claremont late at night in eerily similar circumstances that Justice Hall said "inspired a real and pervasive sense of fear" in the community.Using his work vehicle, a Telstra-issued Holden Commodore station wagon, Edwards drove both women to separate but equally remote areas of the city's fringe, where he stabbed them repeatedly in the neck and upper body, before partially covering their bodies with branches stripped from nearby trees. Both bodies went undiscovered for weeks and were only found by sheer chance, with the passage of time likely destroying vital evidence that might have incriminated Edwards.Yet enough tiny shreds were left behind to ultimately convict the twice-married Edwards, most notably an infinitesimal speck of his DNA that was lodged underneath Ms Glennon's fingernails as she tried to fight off the large-framed technician, who would have towered over the diminutive lawyer. This crucial scrap of biological material was only discovered in 2009, more than a decade after her brutal murder, by a team of highly specialised forensic scientists on the other side of the world, at the UK's Forensic Science Service, where the samples had been sent by WA Police who were desperate for a breakthrough. The case against Edwards was further bolstered by a swathe of fibre evidence that showed both women had been in Edwards's car shortly before they were slain.Edwards But there was not enough evidence to convict him of the murder of 18-year-old Sarah Spiers, who was also taken from Claremont late at night in a similar fashion in January 1996, although Justice Hall ruled that Edwards was her likely killer.Edwards was also sentenced for as she walked home alone at night, 16 months before he murdered Ms Rimmer.The terrified teenager had her hands and feet bound with cables and her head covered by a hood before being bundled into the back of a van and driven to Karrakatta Cemetery, where she was sexually attacked violently. He was also sentenced for breaking into the home of another teenager, an 18-year-old he assaulted while subjecting her to a terrifying ordeal as she lay in her bed in Huntingdale, with her parents in the next room. Edwards finally confessed to both attacks on the eve of his murder trial, despite earlier protesting his innocence.His sentence for those attacks will be served concurrently with the murder sentences.Outside court, police commissioner Chris Dawson said it was a "momentous day" in which an "evil man" had been jailed."Edwards is a killer, a sadistic rapist who preyed on innocent women," he said. "He devastated families and tormented the West Australian community."The jailing of Edwards means the community is now safe from this terrible person."It is my sincere hope … that Edwards will never be released from prison."He said WA Police would never give up trying to solve Ms Spiers's murder and would continue to question Edwards about it."The quest for justice for Sarah will continue," he said.While the families of the three murdered women did not speak outside court, Commissioner Dawson said they were satisfied that justice had been done.He said Edwards's sentence was the longest ever non-parole period in WA judicial history."I think it reflects the severity and gravity of the crimes," he said.Justice Hall said Edwards had refused to participate in a psychiatric assessment, telling him: "I can only assume you retain a stance of denial", with regard to the murders.He said Edwards's demeanour at court and in the police interview after his arrest showed he was a "stoic and controlled person" who "maintained a calm and unemotional demeanour throughout the trial"The judge said he came across as intelligent in the interview, and gave "spontaneous and plausible" denials of the allegations against him later found to be true, which helped explain how he was able to lead an "overtly unremarkable life" while committing atrocious crimes.But while there were aggravating factors to each of the offences, Justice Hall said there was not enough evidence to show Edwards was a continuing threat to the community, or that a "drastic and exceptional" non-release order should be made.Edwards's defence team has until February 3 to lodge and appeal. 23 Dec 202023 Dec 2020Wed 23 Dec 2020 at 5:11am, 23 Dec 202023 Dec 2020Wed 23 Dec 2020 at 1:10pmMore on:

Claremont killer Bradley Edwards gets life sentence for murder of Jane Rimmer and Ciara GlennonShareClaremont killer Bradley Edwards has been told he will most likely die in jail as he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the wilful murders of two young women in a notorious case that shocked the city of Perth.Spontaneous applause broke out in the public gallery as WA Supreme Court Justice Stephen Hall sentenced Edwards to a minimum of 40 years behind bars for the murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon in the mid 1990s, bringing an end to one of the darkest chapters in the state's...

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Claremont killer Bradley Edwards gets life sentence for murder of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon - ABC News

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