UK's longest serving female prisoner to walk free after almost 40 years behind bars - despite warnings she still poses risk of 'serious harm'

By JAMES TOZER, NORTHERN CORRESPONDENT Published: 13:36, 30 June 2026 | Updated: 13:39, 30 June 2026 The UK's longest-serving female prisoner is to be freed from prison - despite warnings that she could still pose a ‘high risk’ of causing ‘serious harm’. ‘Forgotten inmate' Maria Pearson, now 70, has spent almost four decades behind bars for stabbing her ex-boyfriend's new partner to death in 1986. The mother-of-three was previously transferred to an open prison before being sent back to closed conditions over concerns about her behaviour. Ahead of her tenth bid for parole, relatives of victim Janet Newton pleaded for her to remain locked up, saying they were convinced she remained ‘dangerous’. But despite offender managers assessing that she ‘posed a high risk of causing serious harm’, the Parole Board has now approved her release on licence. It said the ‘finely balanced decision’ was made on the basis that once Pearson is freed, she would have to abide ‘strictly’ by conditions including being tracked by GPS for 12 months and follow a curfew. The decision comes after she has served almost 39 years – longer than notorious Moors Murderer Myra Hindley, who had been locked up for 36 years when she died in November 2002. Pearson, from Hartlepool, had married welder Malcolm Pearson bigamously in 1986 - days after the birth of their daughter. Maria Pearson (pictured), now 70, who stabbed her ex-boyfriend's new partner to death, can finally walk free after spending almost 40 years behind bars Building society worker Janet Newton (pictured) was murdered by Pearson in 1986 Their 'doomed' relationship was 'intense and stormy' and their baby was taken into care after a serious incident at their home. After the couple split, he began a relationship with building society worker Ms Newton – leaving her consumed with jealousy. Pearson stalked her rival and sent hate letters to her mother. Finally on October 19, 1986, two days after her ex became engaged to Ms Newton, she plunged a knife 17 times into her chest after confronting her in the street. The knife penetrated 23-year-old Ms Newton’s heart and she was left lying in a pool of blood, Teesside Crown Court later heard. Aged 31, Pearson was found guilty of murder in 1987 and ordered to serve a minimum 12 years before being considered for parole. However her requests to be released were repeatedly turned down, leading to campaigners labelling her the UK’s ‘forgotten inmate’. In 2006 then Home Secretary John Reid rejected a Parole Board recommendation for Pearson to be moved to an open prison and prepared for release. Pearson's 'doomed' relationship with Malcolm Pearson (pictured) was 'intense and stormy' and their baby was taken into care after a serious incident at their home Pearson branded the decision 'irrational' and 'politically motivated', claiming it was a response to public calls for murderers to serve longer sentences. However a senior judge later rejected her claim and she remained behind bars. Her ninth review, concluding in 2023, ruled that Pearson was not fit for release due to the nature of the murder, how she had behaved in custody and evidence at the hearing. Ahead of her latest parole bid, Ms Newton’s sister Lynn said she felt ‘nightmares’ and a ‘sense of dread’ at the prospect of Pearson being released. ‘All I can do is wait and pray the worst does not happen,’ she told the Mirror. ‘I lost my soulmate that day, and I can never forgive her killer - not just what she has put us through by taking Janet's life, but for the years since and how she's shown no remorse for what she did. Relatives of Ms Newton provided a statement setting out the impact of her killing at an oral hearing which concluded on May 16. According to a summary of the decision released by the Parole Board today, Pearson has made ‘mixed progress’ behind bars. She has engaged with psychotherapy and undertaken a Thinking Skills Programme, but has also ‘presented ongoing challenges’, including difficult relationships with professionals. A prison-instructed psychologist considered she posed a ‘moderate to high risk of future serious offending’, raising concerns about her ‘response to authority and potential for conflict’. However a psychologist instructed by Pearson concluded the probability was ‘low’. An independently instructed psychologist recommended release, saying the ‘risk was manageable in the community’. According to the expert, the ‘circumstances of the index offence’ – the murder of Ms Newton - were ‘highly specific and unlikely to recur’. Her community offender managers assessed that Pearson ‘posed a high risk of causing serious harm’, the summary says. But the panel concluded that her risk of causing serious harm ‘did not meet the accepted definition of a high risk’. ‘The panel considered that while Ms Pearson has the potential to cause serious harm, she is unlikely to do so unless there is a significant change in her circumstances.' This could 'lead to an increase in her risk', but would happen 'over a period of time ' meaning that 'warning signs would be apparent to those supervising her' before she could harm anyone, it said. ‘The panel accepted that Ms Pearson presents a risk of harm, particularly in situations where she feels distressed, challenged or under pressure,' the summary continued. ‘However, it concluded that the risk of serious violent reoffending is low, noting the absence of comparable behaviour over many years in custody and the specific circumstances of the original offence.’ Her prison offender manager, lead clinical psychologist and the operational manager of the enhanced offender management service – all of whom had ‘worked closely with Ms Pearson for several years’ - supported her release. They said that while her behaviour ‘can be challenging at times’ and her engagement ‘variable’, they felt that with ‘appropriate support’ her risk ‘could be managed in the community’. Her release plan involves living in designated accommodation overseen by a ‘wide range’ of professionals and with ‘strict limitations’ on her ‘movements, contacts and activities’. The panel concluded that after considering the ‘progress made while in custody’ plus the ‘risk management plan’ and almost 1,000 pages of evidence, its ‘finely balanced decision’ was that Pearson ‘met the test for release’. ‘The panel was satisfied that imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public and that she poses no more than a minimal risk of further serious offending.’ Extra licence conditions include residing at a designated address, being of good behaviour, disclosing the beginning or ending of any relationships, and attending probation appointments. She will also have to abide by a curfew, be GPS tracked for 12 months, heed exclusion zones and not contact the victim’s family. The comments below have not been moderated. 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