“In Camberley, a young woman left a nightclub and disappeared into the dark. By morning, her body had been found near a cemetery path — and the truth, when it finally emerged, seemed almost impossible to believe.”
In 1992, 18-year-old Katie Rackliff was found murdered near Farnborough. The attack was so violent, so extreme, that police believed they were hunting a man.
But years later, the investigation led somewhere no one had expected.
To a schoolgirl.
Sharon Carr was just twelve years old when Katie was killed. What followed became one of the most disturbing stories in modern British crime — not only because of the brutality of the murder, but because of what it forced people to confront about childhood, violence, intent, and capability.
This week, the Archive examines the killing of Katie Rackliff — and the long shadow cast by the girl who would become known as The Devil’s Daughter.
Some cases are frightening for their cruelty. Others for their impossibility. This one was both.
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SOURCES
R (Carr) v Secretary of State for Justice [2020] EWHC 487 (Admin) https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2020/487.html
ICO, 9 Feb 2023, IC-194913-C6X3 — Freedom of Information Act 2000 Decision Notice
https://ico.org.uk/media2/migrated/decision-notices/4024151/ic-194913-c6x3.pdf
The Times — “Woman of 19 Stabbed to Death” (8 Jun 1992)
https://archive.org/stream/NewsUK1992UKEnglish/Jun%2008%201992%2C%20The%20Times%2C%20%2364353%2C%20UK%20%28en%29_djvu.txt
The Independent — “Murder charge girl’s chilling ‘diary of death’” (27 Feb 1997)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/murder-charge-girl-s-chilling-diary-of-death-1280819.html
The Independent — “I was born to be a killer. Every night I see the Devil in my dreams” (26 Mar 1997)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/i-was-born-to-be-a-killer-every-night-i-see-the-devil-in-my-dreams-1275032.html
The Independent — “The girl who killed aged 12” (26 Mar 1997)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-girl-who-killed-aged-12-1275008.html
The Independent — “Britain’s youngest female murderer ‘makes bid for release’” (27 Sept 2022)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/britain-youngest-female-murderer-parole-release-b2176083.html
The Times — conviction/sentencing coverage (26 Mar 1997)
https://archive.org/stream/NewsUK1997UKEnglish/Mar%2026%201997%2C%20The%20Times%2C%20%2365847%2C%20UK%20%28en%29_djvu.txt
SurreyLive — “Katie killer set to fight murder conviction” (21 Oct 2003)
https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/katie-killer-set-fight-murder-4853422
LBC — “Britain’s youngest female murderer who stabbed stranger at age 12 learns fate” (3 Aug 2023)
https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/devils-daughter-britains-youngest-female-murderer-stabbed-stranger-parole-board-DWzdFb_2/
Daily Mirror — “‘Devil’s Daughter’ who killed woman at age 12 won’t be freed as she’s ‘still violent’” (9 Aug 2023)
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/devils-daughter-who-killed-woman-30664584
Double murderer aged 15: Girl given life sentence https://www.standard.co.uk/hp/front/double-murderer-aged-15-girl-given-life-sentence-6511078.html
Wikipedia — Sharon Carr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharon_Carr
Sunday Mirror — DEVIL'S DAUGHTER TO WED THE MUM KILLER https://www.thefreelibrary.com/DEVIL%27S+DAUGHTER+TO+WED+THE+MUM+KILLER%3B+Murderers+fall+in+love+in...-a075419576
PASSION KILLERS; Cons cancel wedding after hearing of each other's evil. https://www.thefreelibrary.com/PASSION+KILLERS%3B+Cons+cancel+wedding+after+hearing+of+each+other's...-a077740168
Jo Frost On Britain's Killer Kids- Sharon Carr - Documentary - Prime Video. Amazon.
Crimewatch UK Episode 17/09/1992
