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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Falconio killer's appeal rejected | Falconio killer's appeal rejected |
| (about 8 hours later) | |
| The man convicted of killing UK tourist Peter Falconio in Australia's outback has lost his final bid for freedom. | |
| Bradley Murdoch was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 2005 for the murder of Mr Falconio, 28, of Hepworth, near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. | Bradley Murdoch was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 2005 for the murder of Mr Falconio, 28, of Hepworth, near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. |
| He was also convicted of abducting and assaulting Mr Falconio's girlfriend, Joanne Lees, of Brighton. | He was also convicted of abducting and assaulting Mr Falconio's girlfriend, Joanne Lees, of Brighton. |
| Murdoch has lost one appeal and now his request for special leave to appeal to the High Court has also been refused. | Murdoch has lost one appeal and now his request for special leave to appeal to the High Court has also been refused. |
| Murdoch has always denied he was the killer and Mr Falconio's body has never been found. Ms Lees escaped and was found in the desert by a truck driver | Murdoch has always denied he was the killer and Mr Falconio's body has never been found. Ms Lees escaped and was found in the desert by a truck driver |
| No motive has ever been established for the attack on a stretch of highway near Barrow Creek, about 200 miles north of Alice Springs. | No motive has ever been established for the attack on a stretch of highway near Barrow Creek, about 200 miles north of Alice Springs. |
| Miss Lees's stepfather Vincent James, from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, said the news was a "relief". | |
| "I am pleased that (the application) has been rejected," he said. "I hope he stays in jail for the rest of his life." | |
| He added: "Justice has been done." | |
| DNA evidence | DNA evidence |
| Murdoch lost an appeal at the Northern Territory Court of Criminal Appeal in January against his conviction and the severity of his 28-year sentence, but sought special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia. | Murdoch lost an appeal at the Northern Territory Court of Criminal Appeal in January against his conviction and the severity of his 28-year sentence, but sought special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia. |
| But the court in Brisbane denied the application and said the appeal court had made no error in its earlier judgement. | But the court in Brisbane denied the application and said the appeal court had made no error in its earlier judgement. |
| Murdoch's lawyers had argued at the appeal court that the trial judge should have excluded Ms Lees' identification of him in a photograph line-up because she had already seen his picture on the internet. | Murdoch's lawyers had argued at the appeal court that the trial judge should have excluded Ms Lees' identification of him in a photograph line-up because she had already seen his picture on the internet. |
| The Crown argued that the evidence was not vital in the light of the "very damning" DNA evidence against him. | The Crown argued that the evidence was not vital in the light of the "very damning" DNA evidence against him. |