Wounded burglar wins right to sue Tony Martin

Dan Gledhill
Saturday 14 June 2003 00:00 BST

Brendan Fearon, the burglar wounded by Tony Martin during a break-in four years ago, has won the right to sue the jailed farmer for damages.

A judge at Nottingham County Court yesterday overturned an earlier decision, which threw out Fearon's claim against Martin.

The 56-year-old farmer is to be released next month after serving five years for manslaughter. He killed Fred Barras, 16, with a shotgun in the burglary at his isolated Norfolk farmhouse..

Fearon, 33, who will get legal aid and has more than 30 criminal convictions, hopes to sue for a reported £15,000. He was jailed for three years for conspiracy to burgle.

District Judge Brian Oliver said: "It would be wrong, subject to other considerations, to deprive the claimant from airing his claim and having a full trial."To deny Fearon the right to his claim, the judge said, could contravene his rights under the Human Rights Convention. Fearon claimed his leg wound had affected his ability to enjoy sex and martial arts and he had suffered post-traumatic stress.

The case is being sent to the High Court because of its high profile and complexity.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in