Harper’s Law; why it will be fitting legacy to PC Andrew Harper – The Yorkshire Post says

GROWING CALLS in the aftermath of the death of Pc Andrew Harper, 28, for mandatory life sentences for those convicted of killing police officers – and other emergency workers – will resonate with all right-minded people who believe the scales of justice are still weighted heavily in favour of the perpetrators of such atrocities.
By YP Comment
Published 20th Aug 2020, 05:46 BST
Pc Andrew Harper, a member of Thames Valley Police, was killed just four weeks after marrying his bride Lissie. Photo credit: Mark Lord/PA WirePc Andrew Harper, a member of Thames Valley Police, was killed just four weeks after marrying his bride Lissie. Photo credit: Mark Lord/PA Wire
Pc Andrew Harper, a member of Thames Valley Police, was killed just four weeks after marrying his bride Lissie. Photo credit: Mark Lord/PA Wire

It was why The Yorkshire Post joined forces with Halifax MP Holly Lynch, a policeman’s daughter, and others to back the Protect The Protectors legislation which led to the advent of more draconian sentencing powers – the challenge is making sure the judiciary use these powers.

And it explains the growing groundswell of support for the campaign being led by Pc Harper’s grief-stricken widow Lissie after the three assailants responsible for her husband’s death were given sentences that were condemned as a travesty.

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Convicted of manslaughter after being cleared of murder, Henry Long, 19, was jailed for 16 years and Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, both 18, were given 13 years.

Lissie Harper, the widow of Pc Andrew Harper, is campaigning for Harper's Law.Lissie Harper, the widow of Pc Andrew Harper, is campaigning for Harper's Law.
Lissie Harper, the widow of Pc Andrew Harper, is campaigning for Harper's Law.

Effectively it leaves Mrs Harper serving the life sentence – she had been married to her husband for just a month before he was dragged to a violent death by the gang’s getaway car as he and a colleague investigated the late-night theft of a quad bike last August.

With the so-called Harper’s Law being backed by the police, and public, in growing numbers, it falls to Britain’s politicians to work on a cross-party basis, as Ms Lynch did so effectively, so that this glaring legal loophole can be closed before another family are left facing the living hell now being endured by Mrs Harper.

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

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Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

The stolen quad bike at the centre of Pc Andrew Harper's death.The stolen quad bike at the centre of Pc Andrew Harper's death.
The stolen quad bike at the centre of Pc Andrew Harper's death.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Sincerely. Thank you.

James Mitchinson

Editor

Related topics:Yorkshire PostYorkshireBritain

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