Find Them Dead

32 Thursday 9 May

Roy Grace was hoping he would get a bright, attentive jury, and not a bunch of numpties, too. Next week, Brighton’s biggest ever serial killer, family doctor Edward Crisp, was in Court 2 at Lewes Crown Court facing seven counts of murder and a host of other offences. From all he had done, the doctor deserved never to see the outside of a prison cell again. And Grace was determined to make sure that happened.

As part of the pre-trial preparations, he had called a meeting at Sussex Police HQ to discuss aspects of the evidence with key members of his team, Norman Potting and Jack Alexander, who were assisting him as case officers. Alexander was not required at court for the Terence Gready trial yet — he had been excluded at the request of the defence, as he was giving evidence against the suspect.

The three of them were seated at the conference table on the first floor of the Major Crime wing discussing a variety of responsibilities. The top of which on Grace’s list was security, because the wily doctor, in his late fifties, had a past history of cunning escapes from custody.

Roy Grace had been Crisp’s arresting officer — nearly losing a leg in the process thanks to being shot by the doctor — so this was personal. For Crisp’s trial, as SIO, he needed to ensure the Exhibits Officer was set up and that the Family Liaison Officers were working with the agencies to support all of Crisp’s surviving victims and the families of the deceased. He wasn’t leaving anything to chance.

He checked with the two detectives about the witnesses the prosecution counsel intended calling to give live evidence, and that all of them were ready. One of their key prosecution witnesses was a plucky lady called Logan Somerville, who had very luckily survived being abducted and imprisoned by Dr Crisp. Another was forensic archaeologist Lucy Sibun.

‘Boss, don’t forget Bobby the dog, who’s going to present the bitemark and DNA evidence,’ Alexander said.

They all laughed. But, as they well knew, it had been Bobby’s barking that had saved another victim’s life, and his bitemark that gave them the breakthrough DNA evidence identifying Crisp.

Grace moved on to the subject of court security. Edward Crisp was one of the most devious criminals he had ever encountered, a man who would have given the legendary Harry Houdini a run for his money. Crisp had a mole-like ability to tunnel his way out of captivity. His sumptuous home in Brighton was riddled with secret passages he had dug. And after evading captivity by Sussex Police and fleeing to France, he had again escaped from a high-security prison near Lyon.

Crisp would be appearing before a High Court judge who was visiting Lewes Crown Court to hear this important trial. Due to the case involving multiple deaths, the criminal justice system required such a figure to preside over the hearing.

Court 3, where the dock was inside a glass enclosure, was already in session. Court 2, where Crisp’s case was listed, had an antiquated open dock. Defendants had escaped from this court’s dock before, and once out of the courtroom there were only a couple of security staff, who would be too preoccupied checking people coming in to prevent any absconder from running out into the busy street and away. Short of bringing the doctor in chained with manacles — which his defence counsel would never have allowed — the court security would be hardly adequate at best, with just two security staff in the dock with Crisp — and that worried Grace.