In this report from May 2021, Jennifer Johnson, aged 55, was found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice following a trial examining her role in the wrongful 1987 acquittal of child killer Russell Bishop.
The prosecution arose from events surrounding the October 1986 double murder of nine-year-old schoolgirls Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway, who were sexually assaulted and strangled in Wild Park, Brighton.
During the initial murder inquiry, Johnson told Sussex Police detectives that a blue Pinto sweatshirt recovered by officers along Bishop’s route home belonged to him.
However, upon taking the oath at Bishop’s 1987 trial, Johnson changed her testimony in the dock, claiming the garment was not his and severely compromising the prosecution’s case.
The resulting acquittal allowed Bishop to walk free from court. Three years later, in 1990, Bishop abducted, sexually assaulted, and attempted to murder a seven-year-old child at Devils Dyke on the South Downs, resulting in a life sentence.
Following the abolition of the double jeopardy rule and major developments in forensic science, modern DNA techniques linked the blue sweatshirt to Bishop, both murdered children, and Johnson. Bishop was retried and convicted of the 1986 double child murders in 2018.
During Johnson’s trial, the court heard evidence detailing how she and Bishop celebrated his 1987 acquittal with champagne funded by a £15,000 newspaper contract.
Love letters written by Johnson were presented to the jury, illustrating the extent of her efforts to protect Bishop from justice.
Following deliberations, the jury convicted Johnson of:
- One count of perjury
- One count of perverting the course of justice
The verdict brought formal legal accountability to Johnson 34 years after the original murder trial.
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