Joanna Simpson Crimeline
Joanna Simpson | Beyond Reason
Joanna Simpson
February 13, 1999: Joanna Simpson married Robert Brown after a short engagement.
January of 2007: Just shy of their 8th wedding anniversary, Joanna Simpson went to see a solicitor to talk about her options when it came to a divorce.
Roughly in July/August 2007: Joanna accused Robert of pulling a knife on her and Robert moved out. Joanna filed for divorce but Robert was fighting to have their prenuptial agreement voided.
October 20, 2010: With the Simpson/Brown divorce pending, the UK Supreme Court ruled in Radmacher v Granatino that prenuptial agreements should be given “decisive weight” in divorces. This was a severe blow to Robert Brown’s case.
October 31, 2010: When dropping the children off after his parenting time, Robert Brown attacked Joanna Simpson with a hammer. He loaded her body into the trunk of his car and drove off, dropping his children off with his girlfriend overnight.
November 1, 2007: Robert Brown called the police around 8:30 in the morning to make an appointment to discuss a domestic incident from the day before. When he showed up at the police station, he was arrested after they found blood at Joanna’s home. Listen to his 999 call here:
November 4, 2007: Robert Brown led the police to where he buried Joanna Simpson’s body in Windsor Great Park. He had prepared the spot in advance, lowering a plastic garden box into the hole.
May 2011: Robert Brown went to trial. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to murder due to insanity. His defense presented an expert to testify that Robert was suffering from an adjustment disorder at the time of the murder.
The jury acquitted Robert Brown of murder. He was then sentenced to 26 years for manslaughter and interfering with a coroner’s inquest. He had to spend 13 of those years behind bars and 13 on supervised release.
Robert Brown
March 1, 2023: Friends and family of Joanna Simpson began a campaign to block Robert Brown’s automatic release, scheduled for November 2023.
October 10, 2023: Justice Secretary Alex Chalk ruled to block Robert’s release pending a decision by the parole board. Robert Brown appealed this decision.
February 28, 2024: Robert Brown lost his appeal. As of this publication, Robert Brown is still incarcerated and going through the parole process.
Sources: 2024 Crimelines Podcast Source List