The man who killed Joanna Simpson has been denied parole and will remain behind bars following a ruling by the UK Parole Board.
Following a private hearing, the UK Parole Board concluded that Robert Brown is not safe to be released, meaning he will stay in custody until the end of his full 26‑year sentence, unless future assessments determine he no longer poses a risk.
Joanna Simpson, 46, who grew up on the Isle of Man, died in October 2010 after Brown attacked her with a claw hammer at their family home.
Brown buried her in a pre‑dug grave in Windsor Great Park before handing himself in the next day.
The former British Airways pilot, was found not guilty of murder but convicted of manslaughter in May 2011. He received 24 years for the killing and an additional two years for obstructing a coroner.
He had been due for automatic release in November 2023 after serving half his sentence, but the UK government intervened to block it, a decision now upheld by the Parole Board.
‘Incredibly Relieved’
For the past three years, Joanna’s mother Diana Parkes CBE and close friend Hetti Barkworth‑Nanton CBE have led a high‑profile campaign to prevent the release of Robert Brown, who was convicted of killing Joanna in 2010.
Diana Parkes CBE said: “I am incredibly relieved that the Parole Board have decided not to release Robert Brown. We have all lived with the fear that this might not be the case but thank goodness it was unanimously agreed he should not be released.
“My daughter would have been 62 last Wednesday 6th May, and, of course, we remember her as the beautiful and vivacious woman she was at 46. That is how I will always remember her. Her children have grown to be the most wonderful young people.They have been my salvation over the years and I feel sure I have been theirs. How I wished I could have told Jo, as life has continued without her, the events that have happened in their lives such as the every day things in life, doing well at school, going to university gaining degrees, finding jobs and also partners. I have every faith that they owe their tenacity and strength to the early years spent with their mother who adored them as indeed I do.
“I should like to especially thank Rt Hon Sir Robert Buckland KBE KC when he was Lord Chancellor who created the Bill in 2022 which Rt Hon Alex Chalk KC, Lord Chancellor in 2023, used for the power to detain Robert Brown.
“Should Brown have been let out, then I am glad to have played an instrumental part in calling on the Government to introduce robust, mandatory restriction zones for perpetrators. By enforcing these strict geographic boundaries, it ensures that the perpetrator’s freedom never again comes at the expense of a family’s right to peace and a life free from intimidation.”