The wife of former Potters Bar mechanic Craig Wright, who was jailed for 15 years for killing her stepdaughter Lauren Wright, had her sentence cut on Friday.

Tracey Wright, of Welney, Norfolk, was jailed in October last year after inflicting years of abuse and neglect on six-year-old Lauren.

She eventually died on May 6 2000 after her stepmother hit her so hard in the stomach that her digestive system collapsed.

But three judges at the Court of Appeal agreed the original sentence was "excessive" and reduced her term to ten years after hearing Wright "had the reasoning skills of a primary school child".

Lauren, who is buried at Saint Giles Church in Blanche Lane, South Mimms, was first placed on the child protection register by Hertfordshire Social Services in May 1997.

This was after fears that her natural mother, who had split up with Wright before she was born, might neglect her.

Wright, however, did maintain contact with his daughter and frequently took her to his Mutton Lane home and his mother's address in Cranborne Close, Potters Bar, before moving to Norfolk when Lauren lived with him permanently.

Tracey Wright moved in shortly afterwards, marking the start of Lauren's horrific abuse.

Craig Wright was also jailed for a total of six years three years for the manslaughter charge and three for neglect.

June 21, 2002 13:30