Man Who Murdered Pregnant Girlfriend Given Whole-Life Order After Court Rules 42-Year Term Too Lenient
Shaine March, a man who murdered his pregnant girlfriend after being released from prison on licence, must now spend the rest of his life in jail. The Court of Appeal has ruled that his original 42-year sentence was "too lenient," substituting it with a whole-life order reserved for the most serious murderers.
Brutal Attack in Walthamstow
Alana Odysseos, 32, was in the early stages of pregnancy with her third child when she was killed by March last July at her home in Walthamstow, east London. She died at the scene from 23 slash and stab wounds. The murder followed an argument about her pregnancy, during which she was heard saying, "I don't want to kill my baby."
In the final moments before her death, Odysseos was seen outside her property clutching her right side. Bleeding from multiple stab wounds, she pointed at March standing nearby and shouted, "Shaine stabbed me, he stabbed me. Help, help."
Previous Murder Conviction
March had been released from prison on a life licence in 2013 after fatally stabbing 17-year-old Andre Drummond in the neck at a McDonald's restaurant in south London in January 2000. Last October, March was jailed for life with a minimum term of 42 years for Odysseos' murder, but jurors in that trial were not told about his previous murder conviction.
The Solicitor General referred this sentence to the Court of Appeal, with barristers arguing that March should have received a whole-life order from the beginning.
Court of Appeal Ruling
In a ruling delivered by Lord Justice Edis, sitting with Mr Justice Cavanagh and Judge Alice Robinson, the court stated: "The sentence was unduly lenient. We quash it, and we quash the minimum term order that the judge made, and substitute in its place a whole-life order, which means that the offender will never be released."
Tom Little KC, representing the Solicitor General, told the court that a whole-life order was "just punishment" and that there was a "constellation of aggravating features" in the case. He argued that "properly analysed, this case should never have left the categorisation as a whole-life order case."
Defense Arguments Rejected
March, 48, had challenged the length of his original sentence, with his barristers claiming it was "manifestly excessive." They pointed to factors including a traumatic brain injury March suffered as a teenager that affected his ability to regulate emotions, and that both murders were "apparently spontaneous."
However, the Court of Appeal rejected these arguments, emphasizing the severity of the crime and March's history of violence. From a video link to HMP Belmarsh, March apologized to members of Odysseos' family, saying, "I just want to say that I am sorry."
Victim Remembered
Alana Odysseos was among the women whose deaths were included in the Guardian's killed women count, a project highlighting the toll and tragedy of femicide in the UK. She was described as a "brilliant mother" who "completely doted" on her daughters.
Her mother, Karen Cronin, spoke to media outside the Old Bailey after March's original sentencing last year, highlighting the devastating impact of the loss on their family.
The case underscores ongoing concerns about violence against women and the sentencing of repeat violent offenders in the UK criminal justice system.
