Parole Board Rules Ex-Pilot Robert Brown Unfit for Release in 2010 Hammer Killing

The Parole Board ruled that Robert Brown, a former airline captain jailed for killing his estranged wife, is not fit for release.

Brown killed Joanna Simpson, 46, in Ascot, Berkshire, on October 31, 2010. He struck her with a claw hammer at her home within earshot of their children, then aged nine and 10. He buried her body in a pre-dug grave in Windsor Great Park and confessed to police the next day.

The former pilot from Winkfield, Berkshire, then 47, was acquitted of murder after jurors heard about stress from the couple's bitter divorce. On May 24, 2011, he received 24 years for manslaughter and two more years for obstructing a coroner, for a total of 26 years.

Brown became eligible for automatic release in November 2023 after serving half his sentence, but the government blocked it. His case went through judicial review: the High Court upheld detention in February 2024 and rejected his appeal in March 2024. An oral hearing occurred on April 23-24, 2026, with a decision issued May 11.

Brown skipped the hearing, dismissing his legal team. The panel reviewed evidence from two psychologists, a psychiatrist, his prison offender manager, and a prospective community supervisor. None believed he met release criteria. He skipped approved risk reduction programs and assessments, engaging only on his terms, often not at all. The hearing examined more than 1,100 written submissions.

Brown remains in custody until 2036 or until the board finds he poses no further risk.

Joanna Simpson's mother, Diana Parkes CBE, said: "I am incredibly relieved that the Parole Board has decided not to release Robert Brown. We have all lived with the fear that this might not be the case but thank goodness it was unanimously agreed he should not be released. My daughter would have been 62 on May 6, and, of course, we remember her as the beautiful and vivacious woman she was at 46. That is how I will always remember her."

She added: "Joanna's children have grown to be the most wonderful young people. They have been my salvation over the years and I feel sure I have been theirs. I have every faith that they owe their tenacity and strength to the early years spent with their mother who adored them as indeed I do."

Carrie Johnson, wife of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who met with the family, said: "Today's decision will be a huge relief to Joanna's friends and family. Joanna's loved ones have spent years fighting with extraordinary courage and determination to ensure justice is done."

Simpson's friend and domestic violence campaigner Hetti Barkworth-Nanton said: "We now need to ensure that rigorous, risk-based sentencing is applied at all times, and that public protection is a shared responsibility for everyone working with dangerous offenders. Every part of the system has a role to play, and when victims, the public, media, politicians and professionals are prepared to listen, challenge and show genuine professional curiosity, we can keep the public safer and save lives."