Dave Middleton spent his 58th birthday last week surrounded by a media circus.Wired up to microphones and surrounded by three cameramen and a reporter, he spent what should have been a happy occasion fielding question after question about the brutal murder of his daughter.

He didn’t mind. Not one to court the limelight, he nonetheless welcomed the fact that the world’s press wants to tell his story — the story of an 11-year fight to bring his beloved Becky’s killers to justice.

Being back in Bermuda where she met her death prompts painful memories, but speaking ahead of today’s Supreme Court judicial review, Mr. Middleton was 100 percent focused on his aim of getting fresh charges against two men once charged with her murder.

“When you get involved in something like this, this is what needs to be done to get to the end of the road,” he said. “There should be interest in the case and getting things corrected.”

Although the horrific facts will be out in the public gaze again, Becky was tortured, raped and stabbed 16 times, Mr. Middleton said of the judicial review: “I’m really looking forward to getting this thing going.”

He explained: “Once you go through this a number of times you almost become callous to the facts of the issue. You choose to go this route. You know the issues that are going to be discussed.”

Mr. Middleton, a water treatment operator from Belleville, Ontario, is divorced from Becky’s mother Cindy Bennett, and has two grown up sons.

He has paid between ten and 12 visits to Bermuda since his daughter’s murder and this time, as before, will visit the remote spot in Ferry Reach where she met her fate. It gives him inspiration to fight on.

“When you go up to Ferry Reach it’s almost like a confirmation of reality. A lot of these issues can be surrealistic. Your initial impression of this is that this isn’t for real.

“It was very, very difficult to imagine and to accept the fact that Becky had died. So full of life and so on the go one day and dead the next is a very difficult thing to accept,” he explained. “When you go down there you realise this really did happen — it’s almost like a way to encourage you to go on and do things. You say ‘this is for real, and this does have to be corrected’ and you don’t want this to happen to somebody else.”

What he wants is fresh charges against the two men originally accused of murder. Neither Kirk Mundy nor Justis Smith were ever convicted of that crime. Mundy was allowed to plead guilty to a lesser offence, and Smith’s trial was thrown out by a judge. Hopes of new charges have already been dashed more than once — most recently when Director of Public Prosecutions Vinette Graham-Allen said last year that the Island’s laws do not support this.

“I was disappointed. I don’t think she had any personal problems recognising what our feelings are. They’ve gone with the technicalities of the matter, but there’s this underlying sense of frustration all the time,” he said. Having top British QC Cherie Booth in his corner to challenge last year’s decision gives him hope.

“It certainly does boost the confidence. There’s no doubt about that,” he said, describing Ms Booth as “very experienced and very capable.”

Yet he is all too aware that Chief Justice Richard Ground may not make the decision he hopes for. In this case, the legal fight could continue as far as the European Court — which would come with a heavy price tag.

“Right now, we’re looking at the best part of $100,000. The total cost is going to depend on how far it has to proceed.

“The costs get greater and greater as you go along,” said Mr. Middleton.

He is therefore grateful for substantial assistance from the Rebecca Middleton Foundation, a campaigning charity that has successfully raised funds in both Bermuda and Canada. In addition to easing the financial burden, the Foundation also works to counsel victims of crime in conjunction with the Women’s Resource Centre and highlight issues such as date rape drugs.

Although it has taken him a long time to come to terms with Becky’s death, Mr. Middleton said the work of the Foundation has helped him move forward.

“She’s not going to re-appear. If we can help someone else — that’s the issue we’re dealing with right now. It’s a personal tragedy but this is about trying to prevent this happening to someone else,” he said. And as the complexities of the legal battle swirl around him — “it’s case law, and quoting this and quoting that” — he holds tight to precious memories of his only daughter.

“She was a young lady. I think she’s cute, but then everyone thinks their own kids are pretty and smart as well. She was very popular. Whenever there was a party she was there ... it felt like we had a house full of kids all the time. She had a very easy-going and pleasant personality,” he said.

One memory in particular brings a smile to his face — Becky’s unusual choice of job.

“She pumped gas. She liked the people that came in there. She would think that was great. It seemed so funny to see Becky out there in the dead of winter marshalling cars through the car wash,” he recalled.

“I guess the story with Becky is we had her with us for 17 years. She was a lot of fun. That’s what I focus on and choose to remember.”

-Anyone interested in supporting the work of the Rebecca Middleton Foundation can ring (441) 232-5390 or email rebecca.rmfoundation@gmail.com for more information.

>A birthday in the media glare