MP welcomes decision to keep Garry Newlove’s killer behind bars as move to open prison blocked

WARRINGTON South MP Andy Carter has welcomed the decision to block the move of Garry Newlove’s killer to an open prison by Justice Secretary Dominic Rabb.

The Justice Secretary has overruled a Parole Board recommendation to move Adam Swellings, the ringleader of a gang who kicked Mr Newlove to death, to an open prison.

The husband of Baroness Newlove of Warrington, the former victims’ commissioner, was attacked after he confronted the gang for vandalising his wife’s car outside their Padgate home.

Welcoming the decision Mr Carter said: “I heard from a large number of concerned Warrington residents after the Parole Board recommended that Adam Swelling be moved to complete his sentence for murder to an open prison. Having raised those concerns directly with the Justice Secretary I welcome his decision to block any such move. He has agreed that Mr Newlove’s killer should stay behind bars, in a secure establishment for the remainder of his sentence.”
“This is one of the first cases where the Secretary of State has used his new powers to block and overturn a decision by the Parole Board, in doing so he has placed a greater focus on protecting the public rather than the rights of offenders. This new, robust approach also places increased emphasis on the views of victims, in this case the views of the Newlove family who lost a caring husband and dad. It’s important that the public have confidence in our justice system, that when murders and dangerous criminals are locked away, they serve their sentences in an appropriate prison, somewhere where they’re not able to come into contact with the general public.”

Swellings, then 19, was jailed for life in 2008 with a minimum tariff of 17 years, along with two other members of the gang.

Following the case, Lady Newlove campaigned for action on youth crime. She became a peer in 2010 for her work and later served as the victims’ commissioner for England and Wales from 2012 to 2019.

Swellings was jailed after Chester Crown Court heard how Mr Newlove was kicked “like a football” when he confronted the youth and two others about vandalism outside his home.

Stephen Sorton, then 17, and Jordan Cunliffe, then 16, were also jailed for life, with minimum terms of 15 and 12 years respectively. They have since been released.