Overview
- The court timetable was updated at Newcastle Crown Court on June 3 when Mr Justice Hilliard set a further pre-trial hearing for July 3 and a trial to begin on November 23, 2026.
- The alleged attack took place in a workshop at maximum-security HMP Frankland on February 26 and is reported to have involved a metal bar.
- Ian Huntley was taken to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary after the assault and died there on March 7 after nine days in hospital.
- Anthony Russell, aged 43–44, has been formally charged with Huntley’s murder; he appeared by videolink at the June 3 hearing and did not enter a plea.
- The schedule moves the case toward a full trial and is likely to sharpen scrutiny of prison safety and procedure, with defence and prosecution preparing medical and psychiatric reports for the coming hearings.