Drug dealer gets life for killing 9-year-old Liverpool girl
By BRIAN MELLEY
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — A drug dealer who killed a 9-year-old Liverpool girl when he tried to gun down a rival has been sentenced to life in prison for murder during an emotional hearing he refused to attend. Thomas Cashman’s lawyer said the convicted killer declined to appear Monday in Manchester Crown Court because he said the proceedings were turning into a circus. Cashman was convicted of murder in the death of Olivia Pratt-Korbel on Aug. 22 as her mother tried to prevent his intended target from barging into their home. Cashman, who had said he wasn’t the killer, will have to serve a minimum of 42 years behind bars.