Olivia Pratt-Korbel’s mum backs more jail time for skipping sentencing

The mother of a nine-year-old girl whose murderer refused to appear in court to hear his sentence has welcomed new powers which could see offenders who avoid the dock given more time in jail.

Olivia Pratt-Korbel was fatally shot by Thomas Cashman when he chased a fellow drug dealer into her home in Dovecot, Liverpool, on 22 August 2022.

Cheryl Korbel said she had wanted to speak directly to Cashman and “look him in the eye” in April 2023, but was shocked when told he did not have to appear.

A new bill was introduced earlier in parliament that could give judges additional powers to punish offenders who skip their sentencing.

Cashman was jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 42 years in April 2023 and Olivia’s family have spent the last two years campaigning for a change in the law to force criminals to appear for sentencing.

Cheryl Korbel told BBC Radio Merseyside she had been “annoyed, angry and shocked” when she was told Cashman did not have to be in court to hear the sentence at the time of his trial.

She said the family had been “unaware” he could refuse to appear.

His absence from court meant Cashman did not hear Ms Korbel read her victim impact statement, detailing how his crime and her daughter’s murder had shattered her life.

Ms Korbel said she had considered not reading her statement in his absence, but then changed her mind.

“Every criminal should be in the dock and listen to the impact statement,” she said.

“No disrespect to the courts; solicitors and barristers who read out impact statements, but it is more powerful when it comes from a victim or a victim’s family.”

The measure has been included in the government’s Victims and Courts Bill after calls by campaigners to change the law.

It could apply to any case in the Crown Court, including for offenders who attend court but are removed for disruptive behaviour – like Southport killer Axel Rudakubana.

Ms Korbel said she understood that some families might find a disruptive defendant distressing but they “should be given the choice to have them there or not”.

She said she had considered the prospect that Cashman could have disrupted proceedings.

“If that was the case that he was going to come up causing a fuss and commotion, I would still have said that was fine, he couldn’t hurt me or my family more than we were already hurt,” she said.

“I do understand other families who might not want to go through that.”

Ms Korbel said the sentencing, including victim impact statements and judge’s comments, should be relayed to a criminal in their cell if they refused to leave.

“If they are able to hear it and they are handcuffed, they can’t put their fingers in their ears,” she said.

“Change the law to ‘you have no choice, you have to come up’ or be forced to listen.”

Ms Korbel said campaigning to change the law had given her a sense of purpose.

Her cousin Antonia Elverson said “We are doing this for the greater good, but we have paid the ultimate price.

“We were just ordinary working class families and now we have been thrown into this world.”