AG百家乐在线官网

The widow of police officer Andrew Harper, who was killed in the line of duty, says she is ready to "find happiness again" as her campaign for a change in law nears its conclusion.

Lissie Harper, 31, intends to "move forwards" and retire from public life once Harper's Law makes it on to the statute books.

The government has backed her calls for mandatory life jail sentences for anyone who kills an emergency service worker while committing a crime.

In August 2019, her husband, 28-year-old PC Harper, died from his injuries when he was caught in a strap attached to the back of a getaway car and dragged down a country road as his teenage killer fled the scene of a quad bike theft in Sulhamstead, Berkshire.

It was his last shift before they were due to go on their honeymoon.

Henry Long, 19, was sentenced to 16 years and 18-year-olds Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers were handed 13 years in custody over the manslaughter of PC Harper, who was a Thames Valley Police traffic officer.

All three were cleared of murder by the jury.

Lissie Harper felt 'justice system was broken'

With her campaign nearing its conclusion, Mrs Harper said she was compelled to fight for the law to change .

She said she felt "utterly let down sitting there in court while the defendants' families cheered", adding she always disliked the limelight but knew she had to keep the campaign in the public eye.

Her two-year campaign will feature in an ITV documentary on Thursday.

"The documentary was something that I kind of went back and forth over whether or not to do it," she said.

"But I felt that it was important to show people the process of the campaign, changing the law, and why I wanted to do it. I felt the justice system was broken."

Read more: Police Federation boss on PC Andrew Harper's legacy

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

2:19

She added that she feels "mentally exhausted" but thanked the public for supporting her throughout.

"We got so far initially because of the support that I've had from the public," she said.

"There's been times where I've been sat in a room full of MPs and thought, 'what am I doing?' But my experience, thankfully, has been fairly quick.

"I'm always receiving support from people. I think that's what kind of gives you the drive to keep going, because I'm constantly hearing, 'keep going, keep going, you're doing the right thing, we need this'. That helps a lot."

'Andrew would want me to be happy'

Mrs Harper said her late husband "would want me to be happy", adding she wants to "find happiness again".

"I can only tell you that if it was the other way around, I know that I would want him to meet somebody and have all the things that people are supposed to have," she said.

"Having been in the public eye, I'm sure there's a lot of opinions about what I should do, what I shouldn't do, what the right time is and all of that.

"But essentially, once this is done (the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill gets royal assent), that's my life. So yes, I do want to find happiness again."