Double jeopardy murderer should never go free, says family of woman he killed before hiding her body under the bath as he prepares for parole hearing

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 06:13 EDT, 11 September 2026 | Updated: 06:16 EDT, 11 September 2026 A killer who murdered a pizza delivery woman then hid her body under the bath should never go free, the victim's family said today ahead of a new parole hearing.William Dunlop, 61, strangled Julie Hogg in Billingham, County Durham, in 1989 and put her mutilated body behind a bath panel where it lay undiscovered for 80 days.The killer subjected Miss Hogg, 22, who had a three-year-old son, to a violent sexual assault in what prosecutors called a 'truly horrendous' attack after she rejected him.Dunlop was tried twice for murder in 1999 but both juries failed to reach a verdict, resulting in his formal acquittal under a convention that a third trial is rarely sought.Then in 2002 while in jail for another crime, he confessed and admitted lying in court, boasting that he could not be prosecuted again because of double jeopardy rules.But Miss Hogg's mother Ann Ming tirelessly campaigned for 15 years to get the 800-year-old law changed so Dunlop could be charged with the same crime twice.In 2006 Dunlop became the first person to be tried under the new rules and pleaded guilty to murder before being jailed for life with a minimum term of 17 years.William Dunlop (left), 61, strangled Julie Hogg (right), 22, in Billingham, County Durham, in 1989 Ann Ming campaigned about the double jeopardy law to bring her daughter's killer to justice He has since faced three parole reviews. The latest in April 2025 saw then-justice secretary Shabana Mahmood block a recommendation to move him to an open jail.But as Dunlop prepares for his next hearing in October, 80-year-old Ms Ming, who found her daughter's body, has told The Times that he should never be released.She said: 'Dunlop should stay behind bars until the day he dies. As long as I'm breathing, I'll try to keep him in prison for public safety. I'll keep fighting as long as I'm still here.'Dunlop said at a previous parole hearing that he regretted once being a 'violent, hideous, uncaring person'.He added that Ms Ming was the 'bane of his life' and he 'used to hate her' but now believed her campaign 'saved' him, because he would have committed more violent crimes had he been free.But Ms Ming said: 'Does that sound like a reformed character? It's quite chilling… to me, public protection has got to be at the forefront of everything to do with him.'I can't understand why he's even allowed to have all these parole hearings. I'm not sleeping very well at the moment because I'm worried about what's going to happen.' The house in in Billingham, County Durham, where Miss Hogg was murdered by Dunlop in 1989 The campaign inspired ITV drama 'I Fought The Law', starring Sheridan Smith as Ann MingDunlop had initially hoped to be released into the community but withdrew this application in 2024 and said he would be better suited to open prison conditions.Miss Hogg's son Kevin Hogg, now 40, is the co-director of an organisation called Victimcare, which helps support for serious crime victims.He told the Times: 'I have memories of the day she was found - the smell and the screaming and the police turning up. I remember all of that. 'That is me for the rest of my life. We as a family live and breathe this. A life sentence isn't a life sentence for the offender. 'It's for the victims and the families because it's those who have to live with the consequences and the knock-on effect of that person's heinous crime.'The family's long campaign inspired a recent ITV series called 'I Fought The Law', which aired last summer and starred Sheridan Smith as Ms Ming.The show won best new drama at the National Television Awards on Tuesday.