Smith, Barry John

ID
2566
Nationality
English
British
Occupation
Burglar
Killer
Murderer
Summary
Attended the Oak Lodge School for Deaf Children in Wandsworth. Already had a police record of petty misdemeanors when arrested and tried for the burglary and murder of a 65-year-old man in collaboration with a deaf sister-in-law, Joanne Lee Smith (q.v.) and a hearing teenager. A first trial collapsed over the issue of qualified court interpreters for the deaf, but a second trial found all 3 guilty of burglary and of killing the old man when he surprised them in the act. Joanne Smith and the teenager were found guilty of murder, Barry Smith of manslaughter. She was jailed for life, the teenager jailed indefinitely subject to review because he was a juvenile, and Barry Smith to 8 years' imprisonment.
References
Deaf Crime Casebook, p.178-187.
Dates
1968?-