Hammer attack survivor Josie looks to the future

Mar 28 2008 icWales

TWELVE years after surviving a brutal hammer attack which killed her mother and sister, Josie Russell has spoken of how she prefers to look ahead to the future than dwell on the past.

Lin Russell, 45, and her daughter Megan, six, died after they were attacked as they walked down a country lane near their home in Chillenden, Kent, in July 1996.

In a documentary to be shown on BBC One on Tuesday, Josie, who is now 21, meets the police officers who investigated the case, which led to the conviction of Michael Stone.

He was given three life sentences after being found guilty of murdering Lin and Megan, and of the attempted murder of Josie, after a second trial in October 2001.

She said: “What happened to me in the past, it can’t bring Lin and Megan back. I’ve never really wanted to talk about it because I was only nine at the time, but now I think I’m ready to find out more about what happened to me and how it affected who I am today.”

Her father Shaun was initially told he had lost Josie as well, such were the extent of her injuries, but she surprised everyone with her recovery and regained her speech, which she had lost as a result of the trauma.

The pair returned to north Wales, where they had lived before moving to Kent, and Josie has remained there, now living in Bangor where she owns her own home.

She has a steady boyfriend, is in her final year of an art diploma, and is involved with various overseas charities.

In the documentary, Josie also meets the consultant who assessed her when she was first admitted to King’s College Hospital.

Dr Marian Crouchman explains her injuries to her and describes her recovery as “extraordinary”.

Dr Crouchman said: “I thought that I would be able to have a conversation with her, but that it would become very rapidly apparent that there were still quite major holes in her language development, and I’m pleasantly surprised.”

The police officers, Edwin Tingley and Pauline Hobson-Smith, who spent over two years working with Josie described how they used ground-breaking techniques to piece together events and gather enough evidence to prosecute Stone.

Ms Hobson-Smith said: “We actually pushed the guidelines quite a bit and we wondered how we were expected to talk to her, get that information out of her.

“We were actually advised at one point – ’give Josie a pencil and paper and see what happens’ – but at that time we knew Josie couldn’t even hold a pencil let alone write anything down. So obviously there was a lot she still had to tell us.”

But despite appreciating the opportunity to find out more about what happened to her, Josie said she prefers to look forward to what is in store for her ahead.

She said: “It’s been really good filling in the gaps and meeting people like the doctor and Ed and Pauline.”

“But I don’t want to go to Kent again or talk about Michael Stone because there’s no point. The only thing I do think about is why did he do it, if he did.

“I just want to think about the good memories of Lin and Megan and mostly about the future and now.”

Josie’s Journey: One Life will be shown on BBC One on Tuesday at 10.35pm.