Justice for William: The Story of Wendy Crompton: Mother of a Murdered Son - Softcover

Simpson, Helen P; Simpson

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1904380301 ISBN 13: 9781904380306

Publisher: Waterside Press, 2007

Synopsis

Wendy Crompton's son William and his girlfriend Fiona were killed in a horrendous attack by a young man when William was just 18 years old. Justice for William shares Wendy's experience of what followed the murders when, as a secondary victim, she was treated in ways that ranged from insensitivity to downright prejudice and lack of respect. She was kept 'out of the loop' that is the criminal justice system, causing her anxiety, stress, and mistrust of everyone from the police, paramedics and the psychiatrists, to the coroner's officer who prevented her from kissing William goodbye and ejected her from the mortuary. Furthermore, the doctors could not satisfactorily explain why they had released her son's killer, the detective said that her son was better off dead than alive, and the funeral director told her "You can't afford flowers." This hard-hitting, remarkable, and challenging book — that should be read by anyone and everyone who comes into contact with victims of crime — also tells of the good that exists in many people and the decency of those who saw Wendy through her experiences. With a Foreword by Terry Waite CBE.

About this title

About the Author:

Helen P Simpson the author of Justice For William is a community safety officer with Kirklees Safer Communities (a partnership between Kirklees Metropolitan Council, West Yorkshire Police Service, the National Probation Service, Victim Support and others) and is involved in the development and implementation of crime reduction strategies to lessen crime, disorder and the fear of crime. She first met Wendy Crompton, shortly after starting work with the Reducing Burglary Initiative (part of Victim Support) based at Huddersfield Police Station. They soon became firm friends and co-campaigners for better treatment of victims of homicide and serious crime. Helen has three children, Emily (30), Steve (28) and Andrew (23). Helen and Wendy share similar tastes in music, drama, art and literature - despite a sporting schism, Wendy being a fan of Huddersfield Giants Rugby League Club and Helen of Huddersfield Town Football Club (neither having yet succeeded in converting the other from rugby league to association football or vice-versa).

Review:

'Looks unflinchingly at a system that is at best thoughtless and at worst downright disrespectful. It's essential reading for victims of crime and those who work with them'.Carol Anne Davis.'I confess that I did not find the book comfortable reading and almost put it to one side after the first couple of chapters. I'm glad that I continued with it as it taught me to be even more understanding in relating to those who suffer. Both Wendy and Helen have made a valuable contribution to my understanding of the problems faced by the victims of crime and those who work with them. They are living proof of what I said earlier [in the Foreword]. Suffering need not destroy. Their book is a testimony to that fact'.Terry Waite CBE'As I progressed through Justice For William, I was compelled to severely disrupt my normal daily routines, in the vain hope of being able to race to the last gripping page in a single session ... I strongly commend this story of extreme horror to those naive members of the largely law-abiding populace who, in their innocent naivety, are unaware that most incidents dramatised and portrayed on their television screens nightly, in action-packed soaps and screen dramas are in fact "borrowed" from real life events, which brought sheer disbelief and utter misery to the surviving relatives of actual victims. Most of all I would recommend it to Government Ministers, Members of Parliament, Consultant Psychiatrists, Criminologists, Senior Police Officers, Prison Governors, Coroners, members of the legal profession, Crown Prosecution Service, Senior Judiciary, Magistracy, the Sentencing Advisory Council and Human Rights protagonists'.Michael Hughes, Internet Law Book Reviews, February 2007

About this edition

• Publisher: Waterside Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 1904380301
• ISBN 13: 9781904380306
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 130