Ipswich man pleads not guilty to murder of mother-of-two Karlie Sone

Paul Stevenson, 39, has denied murdering 28-year-old Karlie Sone, found unresponsive in Ipswich in March. Trial set for 22 March next year.

Ipswich murder trial set for March after not guilty plea

Paul Stevenson, 39, of Fletcher Road, Ipswich, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Karlie Sone, a 28-year-old mother-of-two found unresponsive at a property on Russet Road in the early hours of 10 March, bbc.co.uk reports.

Suffolk Police officers were called to the address at approximately 01:10 GMT following concerns for Sone's welfare. She was declared dead a short while later. Stevenson was subsequently arrested and charged with murder.

At Ipswich Crown Court, where Stevenson appeared via videolink, a four-week trial was scheduled to begin on 22 March next year. He remains in custody.

Those gathered in the public gallery during the plea and trial preparation hearing appeared unhappy at the nine-month wait. An earlier hearing had suggested September as a possible date, but the court was told that a specialist bone pathologist would be required — a factor that significantly altered the timeline.

Andrew Jackson, prosecuting, said such specialists were rare, that finding one willing to take on the case could take time, and that filing their report could take months further still. He described pathology as "extremely important in this case."

Chris Paxton KC, defending, acknowledged the case had "taken on a shape and size I don't think anyone quite appreciated." Judge Samantha Leigh, who will preside over the trial, agreed the picture had shifted since the case first came before her. "The landscape of the case has changed since it was first in front of me," she told the court.

Suffolk Police confirmed that Sone — also known as Karlie Day — and Stevenson were known to each other.

Following her death, floral tributes were left at the scene and a vigil was held in her memory at Landseer Park in Ipswich. Her family described her as a devoted and generous person. Her older brother Kris Sone told the BBC she was "a caring person" whose children "were everything for her."

"They were her main driver to get her out of bed in the morning and to go and seize the day; she was the most devoted mum," he said. "She was always happy and trying to motivate people around her to make better decisions or help them with things that they were going through. If she could help, she would. She just always wanted to give and would never hurt anybody — she was genuinely one of the nicest people."

Sone, who loved music and had been hoping to train as a nursery practitioner, is survived by two children, two brothers and two sisters.

Source: Google News UK — Crime (en)