Friend of murdered pregnant woman 'angry' after killer's sentence reduced

Words by Lilly Croucher

The friend of a pregnant woman who was stabbed to death by her boyfriend has told ITV News of her “anger” after his sentence was reduced by two years.

Liam Taylor, 38, stabbed his pregnant girlfriend Ailish Walsh more than 40 times with scissors at their London flat in December 2022. Ms Walsh was almost 23 weeks pregnant.

Taylor was jailed for life with a minimum term of 27 years at the Old Bailey in August 2023 after pleading guilty to Ms Walsh’s murder.

On Wednesday, judges accepted Taylor’s appeal and said his sentence should be reduced to life with a minimum term of 25 years.

Liam Taylor won his appeal at court today / Credit: Met Police

Ms Walsh’s friend, Sabrina Shelley, says she is “angry” and “devastated” at the Court of Appeal’s decision, particularly after discovering that today was also Taylor’s birthday.

Speaking exclusively to ITV News, she said: “We weren’t made aware until we came out of court that it was actually his birthday today.

“There was a lot of anger and even more anger that it just feels like he’s been rewarded a birthday present, a two year less of a sentence.”

“I think it felt like he was probably sitting there laughing and joking that he’d got that for his birthday when we were sat there, devastated,” she added.

‘Her children will never get to see their mum, and that’s something he stole,’ says Sabrina Shelley

Andrew Morris, representing Taylor, said the sentencing judge incorrectly used words like sadistic and sexual to categorise Taylor’s sentence, but said there was “no factual basis that his conduct was sexual in nature”.

Mr Morris acknowledged that while Ms Walsh, 28, was stabbed in the genitals and abdomen, there was no sexual element to her murder.

The barrister said: “The attack was ferocious, with a large number of stab wounds using two weapons.

“The judge used words like sadistic and sexual, which were chosen in order to meet the sentencing tariff.

“Only as the case developed and changed, it was simply not enough to make for such a high starting point to his sentence.”

He added that Taylor had not intended to kill the foetus but that the “frenzied attack was a loss of temper, on the spur of the moment”.

Ms Shelley said she found the defences’ comments “disappointing”.

“I believe that it really was sexually orientated,” she said.

“If people had read the conversation leading up, to the prior weeks to the murder, you would have known that that was pretty much what he was in it for.

“So I found [the comments] disappointing and the fact that he took that away from that situation and her justice was fairly outrageous, to say the least.”

Jane Osborne KC, representing the Crown Prosecution Service, said the wounds on Ms Walsh’s abdomen “went directly upwards” which “was a clear attempt to inflict direct injury on the foetus he knew the deceased was carrying, and who he knew was his”.

She added: “This was not just an attack on a pregnant woman, but an attack on a pregnant woman to kill both her and the foetus she was carrying.”

Mrs Justice Thornton said Taylor had “left Ms Walsh to die and made no attempt to contact the emergency services” but said there was no sexual element to the offending which allowed a reduction in the sentence.

But Ms Shelley said she feels the family has had a lot taken from them.

“He stole so much and he can still sit there and waive his right to be in court,” she said.

“That’s him sentenced to his 25 years, but we still have to live with the crimes that he committed for the rest of our lives.”

She added: “I feel that if you’ve pleaded guilty to a crime and you want to appeal that decision, you should be able to face that.”