The GSD has issued a statement on the recent Lishman case and says “whilst nothing should be prejudged, it is right that a full investigation should be conducted – if that has not already taken place”.  

A statement from the GSD follows below:

The GSD has today issued a statement, through Shadow Justice Minister, Daniel Feetham QC, saying that any right-minded person reading how the Lishman case has unfolded will rightly be concerned and saddened by recent events.  

“Nothing will bring Carolina back” said Mr Feetham “but her family appear to have been badly let down by the criminal justice system.  Carolina was stabbed twelve times in her own home in front of her daughter.  Every case must be judged on its own merits, and we are not parties to the entire evidence in the case, but it is not difficult to see why the family feel aggrieved by the way the case has developed. Mr Lishman may only serve six years in prison for the offence, and he shortly qualifies for parole. Whilst this may be within manslaughter guidelines, it is not surprising to see that there is significant community disquiet, and those concerns need to be allayed”. 

The GSD has therefore said that “whilst nothing should be prejudged, it is right that a full investigation should be conducted – if that has not already taken place”.  If that investigation has taken place, the public should be told.  The GSD believes “that public confidence in the system is crucial, and lessons have to be learnt to determine whether legislative reform is necessary or whether existing protocols should be reviewed to ensure decisions made in a case of this sort in future are always properly made”.