Richard Madeley has been chastised for advocating that convicts like Lucy Letby be ‘tasered’ to get them to attend in court for their sentencings.
After 14 atrocities against newborn newborns in her care, serial killer nurse Letby was sentenced to life in prison and will never be freed.
Seven babies were murdered and six more were tried to be murdered.
Letby refused to leave her cell and attend her sentence at Manchester Crown Court on Monday, igniting outrage that convicted convicts are able to avoid hearing victim witness accounts.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak described Letby’s absence at the sentence as “cowardly,” adding, “We are considering and have been looking at altering the law to ensure that that occurs, and that’s something that we’ll bring forward in due course.”
During a conversation on Tuesday’s Good Morning Britain over whether offenders should be compelled to attend their own sentencings, guest Andrew Pierce recommended they be ‘gagged,’ while Richard suggested ‘truncheons’ and ‘tasers’ be employed.
Richard had started by asking if convicts like Lucy Letby might be put under ‘pressure’ to appear in court for punishment, implying that their ‘privileges’ may be removed.
‘Why is the sentencing portion of the trial seen to be separate from the whole trial procedure?’ Richard went on.
‘If you have to be in court to be cross-examined by the prosecution, by your own defence, why is the logical conclusion to the case, seen as a separate part? I don’t get it.’
Guest Owen Jones said: ‘When people talk about man-handling defendants, if we’re talking about murderers, blasting around threats to prison officers, six to eight prison officers in full riot gear wrestling a prison officer… I think it’s just there is a reason it hasn’t been in place.’
‘People might enjoy that,’ Kate Garraway replied.
Andrew added that we ‘don’t know’ whether prisoners are ‘forced’ to court, saying: ‘But they get it done. It isn’t complicated.’
Richard continued: ‘The fact of the matter is that if we’re being told we can’t get these people back into court because they might kick up a fuss down in the cells, and they might be aggressive and dangerous, well that’s why you go in mob-handed.
‘Frankly, you have tasers to deal with people like that, and you have truncheons, and you have hand guns.’
‘Taser her then, what rights has she got?’ Andrew replied.
‘Tasers have killed people before,’ Owen highlighted, as Richard pointed out: ‘Well, they are legal.’
‘I don’t think that if you end up in a situation with semi-conscious prisoners dragged into court and possibly causing a circus, it’s about the impact on the victims, how is that the catharsis?’ Owen went on.
‘The killers are smirking at the victims, that’s the worst part of it,’ Andrew said.
Richard Madeley is currently talking about tasering defendants to force them to attend sentencing #GMB
— patrice (@p3gan) August 22, 2023
Sorry but how do interviews like this help anyone? It just feels grubby #gmb #GoodMorningBritain
— 🐈🪴🍄✨Pickle✨🍄🪴🐈 (@FlopsyPickle) August 22, 2023
I find this thing so weird… Truncheons, tasers and handguns? Madeley and Pierce are on another planet. You can't have someone tased and spasming in the dock? #GMB
— arps – @arps.bsky.social (@arpz) August 22, 2023
Viewers were left fuming over the comments, with one writing: ‘F**king hell – @GMB allowing people (including presenters) to promote the beating, tasering and abusing of prisoners! The standards on this programme get lower everyday.’
Another said: ‘I find this thing so weird… Truncheons, tasers and handguns? Madeley and Pierce are on another planet. You can’t have someone tased and spasming in the dock? #GMB.’
‘Richard Madeley is currently talking about tasering defendants to force them to attend sentencing #GMB,’ another said.
‘Erm, because the judge has to consider the appropriate sentence @richardm56 your views this morning have been a disgrace,’ someone else said.
Others were outraged by Richard’s line of inquiry during an interview with criminal psychologist Dr David Holmes, in which the GMB host questioned her “sanity” or “remorse.”
One viewer fumed: ‘Sorry but how do interviews like this help anyone? It just feels grubby.’
Another added: ‘Not sure I want to hear a psychological analysis of Letby. She is a monster, plain and simple. My thoughts are with the parents whose joy was stolen from them by this creature.’
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays from 6am on ITV1.
