A Braintree murderer has won a cut in her prison sentence which the Appeal Court ruled had been "excessive."
A jury last year heard how Emma Last boasted in prison that she sang "Burn, baby burn" after setting fire to Debra Carne's body.
But in an important test case, three Appeal Court judges yesterday reduced Last's tariff the minimum prison term she must serve before being considered for parole from 20 years to 17.
Last, formerly of The Foyer, St Michael's Road, Braintree, admitted Miss Carne's murder at Chelmsford Crown Court early last year.
The trial heard that in July 2002 Miss Carne was lured from her home in Sible Hedingham to a nearby country lane, where she was attacked, asphyxiated and her body set on fire.
Last's counsel, Sonia Woodley QC, had told the Appeal Court how Last's co-accused, 21-year-old Kerry Bauer, bore the same level of responsibility for the crime but had received a tariff of just 17 years, after she denied but was convicted of the murder.
More in today's Evening Gazette
Published Friday, January 28, 2005
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