James Hanratty James Hanratty James Hanratty (4 October 1936 – 4 April 1962), also known as the A6 Murderer, was a British criminal who was one of the final eight people in the UK to be executed before capital punishment was effectively abolished. He was hanged at Bedford Gaol on 4 April 1962, after being convicted of the murder of scientist Michael Gregsten, aged 36, who was shot dead in a car on the A6 at Deadman's Hill, near Clophill, Bedfordshire in August 1961. Gregsten's mistress, Valerie Storie, was raped, shot five times, and left paralysed. According to Storie, the couple were
Murder in English law any other case, a person convicted of murder must be sentenced to imprisonment for life. Since the abolition of capital punishment, murder has carried a mandatory life sentence in English law. this comprises three elements: The tariff sets the minimum time that must be spent in prison before an offender can be considered for parole. Following the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in "T v UK" and the consequent statutory change (enacted as Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 s 60), the judge must indicate in open court the appropriate tariff for an offender aged under