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On a special episode of the Daily Mail's The Trial podcast, host Liz Hull speaks to Ann Ming MBE and her grandson Kevin Hogg about the murder of Julie Hogg, the 800 year old law Ann overturned to jail her killer, and the parole battle the pair still face.
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pair → subscribe → killer
On the night of Wednesday 15 November 1989, Julie, Ann's daughter and Kevin's mother, vanished after finishing her shift at a pizza shop in Billingham, Teesside.
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Julie → vanish → Billingham
Nearly three months later, Ann found the 22 year old's decomposing body hidden behind the bath panel in her own home, even though police had searched the house for five days after she was reported missing.
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she → find → days
'That was the start of a living nightmare,' Ann, now 80, told the podcast.
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Ann → live → podcast
'It was horrific… once I got my thoughts together, I was angry because I'd been right all along - I knew something had happened to her.
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something → get → her
'Police officers were more or less saying that she'd probably just taken off and gone to London, which I knew was not going to be right because she wouldn't go anywhere without her son.'
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she → say → son
On the night of Wednesday 15 November 1989, Julie Hogg (pictured), Ann's daughter and Kevin's mother, vanished after finishing her shift at a pizza shop in Billingham, Teesside
Days later, police arrested William 'Billy' Dunlop, a local man with a reputation for violence.
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police → picture → violence
Julie's keys were found nailed beneath the floorboards of the house where he was lodging, and hairs from his head were on the blanket partly covering her body.
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hairs → find → body
But because Julie's remains were so badly decomposed, the post mortem could not establish exactly how she died.
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she → decompose → ?
Dunlop's first trial in 1991 ended with a hung jury, and so did his retrial.
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retrial → end → jury
Prosecutors offered no further evidence, and he was formally acquitted.
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he → offer → evidence
Within weeks, he was boasting in local pubs that he had committed the perfect murder.
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he → boast → murder
In 1998, he was jailed for seven years for a savage attack on a former girlfriend and her new partner.
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he → jail → girlfriend
From his cell, Dunlop wrote to her warning that when he was released, he would do to her what he had done to Julie.
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he → write → Julie
He later confessed the murder to a prison officer, bragging that he was safe because of an 800 year old law known as double jeopardy, which barred anyone acquitted of a crime from being tried for it again.
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which → confess → it
Ann fought for 15 years to have the law overturned, and in 2006 Dunlop was finally convicted.
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Dunlop → fight → 2006
Her story was turned into the BAFTA nominated drama I Fought the Law, in which she is played by Sheridan Smith.
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she → turn → Smith
I can't tell you what it felt like: Dunlop was there, hearing them say guilty for killing Julie,' she said.
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she → tell → Julie
'I will take it to my grave.
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I → take → grave
I think I just had the biggest mouth among all the other people who'd had acquittals.
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who → think → acquittals
'I had my days where I really felt like giving up, but I am glad I didn't.
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I → have → days
I just wish he'd been given a full life sentence so he can't get out and kill anybody else.
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he → wish → anybody
Although Dunlop was jailed for life, his minimum term of 17 years expired in 2021, and he has faced regular parole reviews ever since.
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he → jail → reviews
Twice the Parole Board has recommended moving him to an open prison, and twice the Justice Secretary has blocked it.
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Secretary → recommend → it
It has sparked yet another fight for Ann and Kevin, who must appear at hearings roughly every two years, reliving the horrors of the case to keep Dunlop, now 63, behind bars.
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who → spark → bars
Ann fought for 15 years to have the law overturned, and in 2006 Dunlop was finally convicted
Ann's story was turned into the BAFTA nominated drama I Fought the Law, in which she is played by Sheridan Smith
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she → fight → Smith
Ann said: 'I tell you now, I dread the parole hearings.
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I → say → hearings
Look at what Dunlop has done since he was wrongfully acquitted: he attempted to murder a man and woman, and threatened to kill another woman.
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he → look → woman
'Why would you let somebody like that out who has committed more than one violent offence?
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who → let → offence
At a previous hearing, Ann said, Dunlop admitted that without her campaign he would never have received such a long sentence, adding: 'There'd be a lot more people dead in Billingham.'
'I have just done my statement [for the Parole Board],' Kevin revealed.
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Kevin → say → Board
'I chose to have it disclosed because he has to be given a chance to defend what I have actually put into the statement.
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I → choose → statement
This time around, I have said that when I read it, it will be heard by the audience in the room whether that be academics, the media, et cetera.
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that → say → room
The rationale behind that is because the Parole Board asked me to remove certain sections of my statement.
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Board → ask → statement
One section [was responding to] Dunlop wanting to reconnect with his son.
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section → respond → son
I said: "I will never be able to reconnect with my mother."
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I → say → mother
Legal have challenged it and said: 'Well, that's an opinion.'
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that → challenge → it
I can't reconnect, it's factual.
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it → reconnect → ?
It's his human right to have a review every 12 to 24 months.
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It → have → months
As soon as we find out the decision, which will be in 28 days, they start the whole process within a couple of months after that next hearing.
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they → find → hearing
New subscribers gain exclusive access to the Trial+, On The Case and Buried Evidence.
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subscribers → gain → Case
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