Sion Jenkins to publish memoirs

Sion Jenkins, cleared of murdering his 13-year-old foster daughter, Billie-Jo Jenkins, has signed a deal to publish his memoirs.

The book, to be released in the summer, will tell of the toll his three trials and prison sentence have taken on his life. The publisher, John Blake, a former tabloid journalist, bought the rights from the London literary agent David Godwin for what both say was a relatively small sum, after the book was turned down by at least eight other publishers.

Mr Jenkins was convicted of murder in 1998 after Billie-Jo was found battered to death with an iron tent peg at their home. After a number of appeals, he was twice retried. In each case, the jury was unable to reach a majority verdict and in 2006 he was acquitted.

Mr Blake said he anticipated criticism. "People tend to think that he did it. Obviously he didn't because he was cleared." Mr Godwin describes Mr Jenkins' manuscript as "one of the most important books I've ever represented... The sort of terrible injustice [Mr Jenkins endured] has never been more powerfully shown."