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13/06/2008
Teenagers Appeal Life Sentences For 'Goth' Murder
Two teenagers jailed for life for the murder a young 'Goth' woman are appealing their sentences.
Sophie Lancaster, 20, and her boyfriend Robert Maltby – also a Goth – were attacked in Stubbylee Park in March by a gang of five youths.
Mr Maltby was punched after someone in the gang shouted "let's bang him".
It is believed that the gang attacked Miss Lancaster as she held her boyfriend in her arms and pleaded with them to stop beating and kicking him.
Sophie died nearly two weeks after the attack while Robert, 21, was left in a coma and is still struggling to recover from his injuries.
Brendan Harris, 15, and Ryan Herbert, 16, were sentenced to a minimum of 18 years and 16 years respectively.
Harris, who was convicted in March, has denied murder, while Herbert pleaded guilty before the trial started.
The three youths who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent on Mr Maltby have also appealed their sentences.
Danny Hulme, 17, and his brother Joseph, 16, from Whitworth, near Bacup were sentenced to five years and 10 months while Daniel Mallet, 17, of Rockcliffe Drive, was sentenced to four years and four months.
The cases will now go before a High Court judge to establish if there are any grounds for an appeal.
Passing sentence at Preston Crown Court in April, Judge Anthony Russell QC described the attack as "feral thuggery".
"At least wild animals, when they hunt in packs, have a legitimate reason for so doing, to obtain food.
"You have none and your behaviour on that night degrades humanity itself," he said.
The Goth sub-culture began in the UK during the 1980s in the gothic rock scene. Members of the Goth culture typically wear black clothes and makeup.
See: Teenagers Face Life Imprisonment For 'Goth' Murder
(DS)
Sophie Lancaster, 20, and her boyfriend Robert Maltby – also a Goth – were attacked in Stubbylee Park in March by a gang of five youths.
Mr Maltby was punched after someone in the gang shouted "let's bang him".
It is believed that the gang attacked Miss Lancaster as she held her boyfriend in her arms and pleaded with them to stop beating and kicking him.
Sophie died nearly two weeks after the attack while Robert, 21, was left in a coma and is still struggling to recover from his injuries.
Brendan Harris, 15, and Ryan Herbert, 16, were sentenced to a minimum of 18 years and 16 years respectively.
Harris, who was convicted in March, has denied murder, while Herbert pleaded guilty before the trial started.
The three youths who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent on Mr Maltby have also appealed their sentences.
Danny Hulme, 17, and his brother Joseph, 16, from Whitworth, near Bacup were sentenced to five years and 10 months while Daniel Mallet, 17, of Rockcliffe Drive, was sentenced to four years and four months.
The cases will now go before a High Court judge to establish if there are any grounds for an appeal.
Passing sentence at Preston Crown Court in April, Judge Anthony Russell QC described the attack as "feral thuggery".
"At least wild animals, when they hunt in packs, have a legitimate reason for so doing, to obtain food.
"You have none and your behaviour on that night degrades humanity itself," he said.
The Goth sub-culture began in the UK during the 1980s in the gothic rock scene. Members of the Goth culture typically wear black clothes and makeup.
See: Teenagers Face Life Imprisonment For 'Goth' Murder
(DS)
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07 October 2008
Teenagers Appeal 'Goth Murder' Sentence
A gang of teenagers, convicted of carrying out a vicious attack on a couple, resulting in the death of a 20-year-old woman, are to appeal against their sentences. Two teenagers were found guilty of the murder of Sophie Lancaster, 20, last summer in Stubbylee Park in Bacup, Lancashire.
Teenagers Appeal 'Goth Murder' Sentence
A gang of teenagers, convicted of carrying out a vicious attack on a couple, resulting in the death of a 20-year-old woman, are to appeal against their sentences. Two teenagers were found guilty of the murder of Sophie Lancaster, 20, last summer in Stubbylee Park in Bacup, Lancashire.
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Two teenagers have been given life sentences for the murder of a schoolboy. Kodja Yenga, 16, was stabbed in the heart in a gang ambush in Hammersmith, west London, in March last year. Tirrel Davis, 17, and 14-year-old Brandon Richmond have been ordered to serve a minimum of 15 years behind bars.
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Teens Handed Life Sentences For Cyclist Murder
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