Peter Sullivan, a 68-year-old man from Merseyside, has been released from prison after serving 38 years for a murder he did not commit. The Court of Appeal quashed his conviction on Tuesday, following the emergence of new forensic DNA evidence that proved he was not the perpetrator.
Sullivan was convicted in 1987 for the murder of 21-year-old Diane Sindall, who was brutally attacked and killed in Bebington, near Liverpool, in August 1986.
The prosecution at the time relied heavily on circumstantial evidence, including disputed bite-mark analysis and police interviews that have since been called into question.
The breakthrough came after the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body investigating potential miscarriages of justice, referred Sullivan’s case to the Court of Appeal.
This referral followed advanced DNA testing on samples preserved from the crime scene, which revealed a genetic profile that did not match Sullivan. The DNA belonged to an unidentified individual, casting significant doubt on the original conviction.
During the hearing, Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with two other judges, stated that it was “impossible to view the appellant’s conviction as safe” in light of the new evidence and ordered Sullivan’s immediate release. Appearing by video link from Wakefield Prison, Sullivan was visibly emotional as he learned of his freedom.
In a statement delivered by his lawyer, Sullivan said, “What happened to me was very wrong, but it does not diminish the fact that it was a heinous and tragic loss of life. I am not angry, I am not bitter. I am simply eager to return to my loved ones and make the most of the time I have left in this world.”
