Carjack murderer

Christopher Howell

Christopher Howell’s manslaughter conviction might have put paid to police efforts to establish “carjacking” in the public’s mind as yet another crime, such as “mugging”, which only black people commit.

A comparison of Howell’s conviction with that of Dwaine Williams’ for murder reveals much about the double standards in the British criminal justice system and media.

In June 2002, Howell attacked 64-year-old Sikiru Egberongbe with a brick as he arrived at Cariocca Business Park, Manchester, where he worked as a security guard. Howell seized Mr Egberongbe’s car and ran him over with it. Mr Egberongbe suffered chest and leg injuries from which he died in North Manchester General Hospital five days later.

On 27 January 2002, Williams wanted to steal Tim Robinson’s car in Battersea, southwest London. He stabbed Mr Robinson, a 25-year-old estate agent, when he refused to give him his car keys. Mr Robinson died from his injuries on 6 February 2002.

The essential facts are similar in both cases: a car theft or attempted car theft resulted in the violent death of a motorist. Howell and Williams are 18-years-old. Before the killings, the police knew both of them.

Howell had previous convictions for assault, robbery, burglary, violent disorder, wounding and “carjacking”, which is aggravated vehicle taking.

William also had previous convictions for assault, robbery, burglary, violent disorder, wounding and aggravated vehicle taking.

The CPS, crown prosecutors, charged Howell with manslaughter for his killing of Sikiru Egberongbe.

The CPS charged Williams with murder for his killing of Tim Robinson.

Manslaughter is a less serious charge than murder.

In order to find Williams guilty of murder, prosecutors had to prove to the jury that he intended to kill Tim Robinson when he stabbed him. For murder, “the punishment is mandatory” life in imprisonment.

Charged with manslaughter, prosecutors did not have to prove that Howell intended to kill Sikiru Egberongbe when he hit him with the brick and ran over him with his car. Unlike in murder cases, a judge has the power to set the length of the sentence in manslaughter cases.

As it happened both killers pleaded guilty to the offence with which they were charged.

At his trial, defence lawyer Nigel Lithman QC read out a note which Williams had written. In his note Williams said, "I didn't set out to kill anyone and hope that by pleading guilty I can save everyone from reliving what happened".

As prosecutors must prove 'intent' in order to secure a murder conviction, Williams' claim that he "didn't set out to kill anyone" must be understood as his denial of 'intent' to kill Tim Robinson when he stabbed him.

However, because Williams pleaded guilty to murder, with which the CPS charged him, he innocently accepted the CPS' version of what his 'intent' was when he stabbed Mr Robinson, specifically his intent was to kill him.

Williams was sentenced to life imprisonment.

In a just criminal justice system, the CPS would have charged Williams with manslaughter, which is what they finally charged Howell with for his killing of Sikiru Egberongbe.

Howell was originally charged with murder. But the CPS accepted "his not plea guilty to murder" reported Britain's premier black-hater newspaper, The Sun (13/11/02).

Like Williams, Howell too wrote a note in which he expressed his regret for what had "happened". But his remorse was coupled with a plea for leniency. Judge Rhy Davis QC said to Howell: "your actions were more ruthless than reckless", which suggested that he believed Howell intended to kill Mr Egberongbe. He sentenced Howell to eight years in prison, a far more lenient sentence than Williams's life imprisonment.

Dwaine Williams is black. Tim Robinson, the person he killed, is a white "former public schoolboy".

Christopher Howell is white. Sikiru Egberongbe, the person he killed, is a black Nigerian-born father-of-five.

The press overlooked the news of Howell's manslaughter conviction in November. By contrast in October, national newspapers reported Williams conviction's as "Britain's first carjacking murder".

On 4 October 2002, the Sun editorial describes Williams as an "evil criminal" "vermin" who needs to be kept out of "harm's way". According to the Daily Mail, 4/10/02, Williams is a "carjack murderer" contemptuous of the law.

'Carjacking' like 'mugging' is not a legally defined criminal offence. No one in Britain has ever been charged with 'mugging'. Nor will anyone ever be charged with 'carjacking', which by law is aggravated vehicle taking.

The police and black-hater newspapers use the label 'mugging' or 'carjacking' to link robbery from a person and aggravated vehicle taking to black people alone.

Following Dwaine Williams' conviction, newspapers claimed he is Britain's first 'carjack murderer'. By contrast the Telegraph, 13/11/02, describes Howell as: " A teenager who killed a security guard while stealing his car".

If the police and black-hater newspapers are going to use the label "carjacking" to identify a particular offence involving car theft, then the 'A6 murder' was Britain's first 'carjacking'.

On August 22, 1961, 36-year-old Michael Gregsten and his lover, Valerie Storie, 22, were in his car. A gunman got into the back seat of the car. He told Mr Gregsten to drive. He robbed them and shot dead Mr Gregsten. He raped Valerie Storie, shot her and left her for dead. He stole the car.

The gunman was white.

17 February 1962, James Francis Hanratty, 24, was convicted of murder, attempted murder and rape. He had always protested his innocence.

Britain's first 'carjack murderer', James Hanratty was hanged on April 4, 1962, long before Dwaine Williams was born.

Rather than concocting race-specific crimes, the police would better serve the public by improving their crime detection rate, currently 23%.