Following a trial at Preston Crown Court before a jury and the Recorder of Preston, Rachel Cooper has secured the conviction of Alexander Lapinski for attempted murder; he tried to kill a man in the gents toilets of a pub in Morecambe.
In January 2020, the Defendant, Alexander Lapinski, and the man he later attacked spent the evening in the Pier Hotel, Morecambe. The two men did not know each other and had had no contact during the course of the evening. At around midnight Lapinski and his victim went to the toilets. For reasons which remain a mystery Mr Lapinski took issue with the other man and, having left the toilets, he took from his jacket pocket a cut throat razor that he habitually carried. He then returned to the toilets, grabbed his victim by the neck, and cut across his throat leaving a 6cm wound which had to be stitched under general anaesthetic. Later Mr Lapinski said he carried the blade to protect himself and that he had acted in self-defence. During trial preparation Rachel advised that these actions went beyond an assault, and that the question of Mr Lapinksi’s intent should properly be left to the jury. By their verdict the jury showed they were sure that Mr Lapinski had no excuse for what he had done, and that he intended to kill.
On 26 February 2021 the Recorder of Preston imposed a 12 year sentence on Mr Lapinski of which he will serve two thirds, eight years.
Rachel who was instructed by the Crown Prosecution Service was called to the Bar in 2007. She is an established and much in demand barrister whose practice is focused on criminal, professional disciplinary and regulatory law. She has a particular expertise in cases involving mentally disordered or vulnerable defendants, complainants or witnesses. She was a legal adviser in the Magistrates Court and has extensive knowledge of road traffic law and undertakes this work in the Magistrates Court on a privately instructed basis. In professional disciplinary areas Rachel has significant experience in representing medical professionals in tribunal hearings and has represented clients at all levels before the GMC and NMC.
For further information contact her clerk Laura Nicholson.