A top human rights lawyer says she is convinced one of Kent\u2019s most notorious killers is innocent and should have his conviction quashed.<\/p>\n
Karen Todner believes Michael Stone should never have been convicted of the Chillenden attacks, which happened on this day 30 years ago.<\/p>\n
Michael Stone – serving three life sentences for Chillenden murders<\/p>\n
Lin and daughters Megan and Josie Russell were bludgeoned with a hammer in a quiet country lane in an attack which shocked the nation.<\/p>\n
While the mum and six-year-old Megan died from their wounds, Josie, nine, miraculously survived and later recovered from her horror injuries.<\/p>\n
Speaking to KentOnline this week, Ms Todner explained how she has been brought in to help with attempts to clear Stone\u2019s name.<\/p>\n
And she says in the coming weeks, she hopes to be in a position to discuss the identities of people she believes the police should be questioning in connection with the killings.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cAll cases I have dealt with are different, but this has to be one of the biggest cases of injustice in British criminal history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lin Russell and daughter Megan were budgeoned to death<\/p>\n
The Cotswolds-based solicitor gained global recognition from 2002 to 2012 for representing British hacker and computer expert Gary McKinnon.<\/p>\n
He was accused by the US government of carrying out \u201cthe biggest computer hack of all time\u201d against the Pentagon and NASA.<\/p>\n
The Asperger\u2019s syndrome sufferer claimed he was simply searching for evidence of UFOs, with Todner successfully arguing he would be a suicide risk if extradited to America.<\/p>\n
More recently, she represented former UBS Swiss bank trader Tom Hayes – getting his 2015 conviction over the LIBOR financial rigging scandal overturned.<\/p>\n
On the back of this, she was approached by Stone\u2019s barrister, Mark McDonald at a legal conference.<\/p>\n
Josie Russell miraculously survived the hammer attack<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cI have been on the legal team since February with a view to kick-start the review process, which, largely down to being under-resourced and understaffed, is painfully slow.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll those years in prison is a long time. Michael has certainly been through the mill.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m an aggressive litigator and have always been passionate about this case. I am 100% sure he didn\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n
\u201cKent Police may say they have a safe conviction, but I shall prove them wrong. This case has been allowed to drift along, but I\u2019m going to bring it back together.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn innocent man has been in prison for too long. I\u2019m not going away on this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Karen Todner will be representing Michael Stone, who is serving time for the Chillenden murders<\/p>\n
Former Gillingham resident Stone, who is being held in HMP Frankland, County Durham, was a heroin addict and known criminal at the time of the attacks.<\/p>\n
He was arrested a year later and has always protested his innocence despite being twice convicted.<\/p>\n
Last October, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) said that previous assessments \u201cfound no incredible evidence or argument that raised a real possibility of the convictions being quashed\u201d.<\/p>\n