Murder victim's mother set to sue

A CLAIM for damages by the mother of 13-year-old Caroline Dickinson, who was murdered on a school trip to France three years ago, is to be heard in the autumn, it was confirmed yesterday.

Sue Dickinson, of Launceston, Cornwall, announced in April 1998 that she had started civil proceedings for alleged negligence and breach of duty against Cornwall County Council, which organised the trip. Her solicitor, Ian Langsford, said the hearing, before a High Court judge in Plymouth, would begin on 15 November.

Caroline, 13, was raped and murdered in a youth hostel in Pleine Fougeres, Brittany, on 18 July 1996, while on a five-day visit to France with 39 other pupils from Launceston Community College. The killer, who struck as Caroline slept in a dormitory with four other girls, is still at large.