Joel Smith (murderer)

Joel Smith, born 1973, is a drug dealer and convicted murderer. On 4 August 2006 he was convicted of murdering seven-year-old Toni-Ann Byfield and the man who was thought to be her father, Bertram Byfield, at a bedsit in Kensal Green, London, in September 2003 [ cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/5241180.stm |title=Life sentence for Toni-Ann killer |accessdate=2006-06-07 |publisher=BBC News ] .

Toni-Ann was shot in the back by Smith after he had shot Bertram Byfield, a rival drug dealer, so that she could not identify Mr. Byfield's killer.

Smith believed that he had committed a perfect crime, leaving no DNA or forensic evidence at the scene. There was also no CCTV in the area.

Neighbours had heard four shots followed by silence.

Following the murders Smith, who was known as Cocaine or Caine, fled London to Liverpool. While serving a prison sentence here he was turned in by former friends and acquaintances who had been appalled by the murder.

Bertram Byfield had believed he was Toni-Ann's father. However, post-mortem examinations revealed he was not. He had been jailed in 1997 for dealing in crack cocaine [ cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/5219854.stm |title=Toni-Ann placed in criminal world |accessdate=2006-06-07 |author=Douglas Marshall |last=Marshall |first=Douglas |publisher=BBC News ] . Despite his criminal background Toni-Ann, who was living under the care of Birmingham Social Services, had been allowed to visit him at his bedsit in an ex-offenders' hostel.

In court, Smith had denied the murders, claiming another man had admitted being the killer to him. While in court Joel Smith lied to the Judge. After being found guilty Smith was jailed for life for both murders, with a recommendation that he should serve at least 40 years before being considered for parole. As a result, he is likely to remain in prison until at least 2045 and the age of 72. This sentence is one of the longest recommended minimum terms ever made by a judge or politician in England and Wales.

Bertram Byfield

Bertram Byfield had been jailed in 1997 for dealing in crack cocaine. Despite his criminal background Toni-Ann, who was living under the care of Birmingham Social Services, had been allowed to visit him at his bedsit in an ex-offenders' hostel.

As well as serving time in prison Mr Byfield, who was also known as Tony or Blacka, is believed to have been affiliated to a Jamaican drugs cartel. He had survived an attempt on his life in 2002 when he was shot six times. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/5219854.stm BBC news] ] Smith believed that he had committed a perfect crime, leaving no DNA or forensic evidence at the scene. There was also no CCTV in the area.

Neighbours had heard four shots followed by silence.

Following the murders Smith, who was known as Cocaine or Caine, fled London to Liverpool. While serving a prison sentence there he was turned by former friends and acquaintances who had been appalled by the murder.

In court, Smith had denied the murders, claiming another man had admitted being the killer to him. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/5169298.stm BBC News] ] After being found guilty Smith was jailed for life for both murders. The judge recommended that he serve a minimum of 40 years for Toni-Ann’s murder and 33 years for that of Mr Byfield.

Toni-Ann Byfield

Toni-Ann was staying with Bertram Byfield when they were killed. At the time of her death, she was in the care of Birmingham Social Services, who had placed her in the care of a foster family. However, when the family went on holiday, she was left with a friend of Bertram's, and was allowed to stay in Bertram's bedsit for the weekend. Before the shootings it was believed that Bertram was the father of Toni-Ann, which was later shown by DNA tests to be untrue.

Toni-Ann was seven years old at the time of her death. She was born in Jamaica but raised in the United Kingdom for most of her short life. Her mother, Rosalyn Richards, did not emigrate to the UK with Toni-Ann and Bertram, but arrived in the UK soon after the murders to make an appeal to the public to assist in finding the killer. While she was in the UK, she claimed asylum but her request was rejected and she is due to be deported.

The murder provoked outrage around London and brought criticism of Birmingham Social Services to the fore. The Department of Social Services, when dealing with children, holds a policy of taking the wishes of the child into serious consideration, and holds the position that placing the child with parents or other relatives is preferable to a foster family. Toni-Ann, through her own admission, was very close to Bertram and had expressed a desire to be with her "father". However, criticism was made of Birmingham Social Services for failing to take into account that Bertram had recently served a prison sentence for a drug offence and was believed to still be involved in the drug trade. It forced the police, media and consequently public to take a more focussed stand on gun crime, and it has become an important issue since. This case, together with a number of others including that of Victoria Climbié, also raised questions about the failings and limitations of Social Services departments.

References

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5247980.stm BBC News: Gun fears follow Toni-Ann verdict]
* [http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1008&id=1134322006 The Scotman: 'Cold-blooded' Toni-Ann killer to serve 40 years] by Shenai Raif
* [http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/cgi-script/csArticles/articles/000026/002651.htm Caribbean Net News: London drug dealer jailed for life for Jamaican girl's murder] by Peter Griffiths
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5241180.stm BBC News article covering Smith's conviction]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/3110754.stm BBC News article covering the event]
* [http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/story/0,1074,1209372,00.html "The Guardian" newspaper coverage]
* [http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1008 "The Scotsman" newspaper coverage]
* [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20051014/ai_n15713617 "The Independent" newspaper coverage]
* [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=Y11DN3NNH5HZPQFIQMFCFFOAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2003/09/15/nshot15.xml "Daily Telegraph" newspaper coverage]