Arthur Hutchinson (born 19 February 1941) is a British convicted murderer.
Born at Hartlepool, County Durham he attained notoriety in 1984 when he was convicted of three murders committed in Dore, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, on 23 October 1983. He murdered Basil Laitner (aged 59), his 55-year-old wife Avril, and their 28-year-old son Richard. He raped their 18-year-old daughter Nicola at knife-point before fleeing. Just hours earlier, the family had hosted the wedding reception of their other daughter Suzanne at the house. It is believed that he was planning to commit an armed robbery at the house.[1]
Hutchinson was also wanted for a rape at the time, and had already spent more than five years in prison for the attempted murder of his brother-in-law. His identity was established by the description given by Nicola, and by forensic evidence in the form of a palm-print left on a champagne glass.[2] After spending weeks on the run, wearing disguises and moving from place to place in Barnsley, Nottinghamshire, Manchester, York, and Scarborough, he was finally captured on a farm in Hartlepool.[1]
He was found guilty of all three murders and the rape on 14 September 1984. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommended minimum term of 18 years, which could have seen him out of prison by 2002 and the age of 61 in the event of the Parole Board deciding that he no longer posed a risk.
However, it was later reported that the Home Secretary had placed Hutchinson on the list of prisoners whose life sentences should mean life, meaning that he would probably never be released.
Hutchinson later appealed against the Home Secretary's ruling. His case was heard on 16 May 2008 at the High Court, nearly six years after the final say on minimum terms for life sentence prisoners was transferred from the Home Secretary to the High Court. His solicitors argued that a whole life tariff was a breach of his human rights.
However, his appeal was rejected and the High Court agreed with the Home Secretary's ruling that life must mean life for Hutchinson.[3]
Hutchinson lodged a second appeal against his sentence shortly afterwards, his case returning to the High Court on 6 October 2008, but this too was rejected.[4]