Latest news with #EmmaLovell
The Sun
4 days ago
- The Sun
Teen killer who stabbed Brit mum to death has sentence REDUCED as heartbroken widower asks ‘how much is a life worth?'
A TEEN killer who stabbed a Brit mum to death will be released from prison more than one year early - sparking further heartbreak for the victim's family. Expat Emma Lovell, 41, was killed by a knife-wielding 17-year-old outside her home in Brisbane, Australia, on Boxing Day in 2022. 7 7 Her heartbroken widower Lee was left "devastated" by the news, saying that the initial sentence was insufficient to begin with. The teen previously pleaded guilty to stabbing Emma in the heart and her husband, Lee, in the back during the home invasion at North Lakes. The youngster, who cannot be named, was sentenced to 14 years in prison, the maximum sentence. At the time, children found guilty of murder could only be sentenced to 10 years behind bars - unless the court deemed the crime especially heinous. But in December 2024, new Premier David Crisafulli brought in 'Adult Crime, Adult Time' laws, setting a minimum 20-year non-parole term. These new rules do not apply to old cases, and so an appeal made by the teen was heard under the old law. His lawyers argued the judge made mistakes, ignored his personal circumstances, and gave a sentence that was 'manifestly excessive'. The state's new Attorney-General, Deb Frecklington, is now weighing up whether to make an appeal to the High Court. Emma's husband told Courier Mail: "I don't know what to say, I'm shocked that they can put more of a value to someone's freedom than someone's life. "I just don't feel justice has been served one bit for what happened to Emma." Husband hits out as teen burglar cleared of Brit wife Emma Lovell's Boxing Day murder & says 'we have a life sentence He added: "Seems like all you are doing now is saying to people to commit an offence and not much will happen. Lovell explained that he hoped the new laws would help to counter the state's youth crime wave. He accused the justice system of "not doing its job", adding that the teen's appeal should have increased his sentence instead of decreasing it. Meanwhile the Attorney-General said the decision was "an unacceptable outcome". In 2024, chilling CCTV revealed the moment the two teen burglars broke into Emma's home before she was stabbed to death. Footage released by the Supreme Court of Queensland showed the first moments of the horror break-in, with one of the thugs testing the front door before signaling to his accomplice with a thumbs-up gesture. Emma and husband Lee were awakened by their dogs barking at around 11.30pm. Confronting the intruders at their door, a physical struggle ensued outside, before the confrontation moved to the front lawn. 7 7 During the fight, Lee was stabbed, and Emma knifed in her chest. In the footage audio, harrowing threats were also captured. The phrase "I'll kill you" and the word "stop" were heard multiple times, as both Emma and Lee fought for their lives. According to court testimony, the defence claimed that the second teen was the one yelling "stop" during the incident, but the evidence painted a chilling picture of a violent attack. The main attacker who delivered the fatal blow admitted to the murder and received the 14-year prison sentence. The second teen was acquitted of murder and instead found guilty of burglary and assault causing bodily harm in company during a judge-only trial in October. Emma and Lee, originally from Ipswich, relocated to Australia in 2011 after first visiting the country in 2002. The dad-of-two shared that his daughters' lives would never be the same and revealed he is now contemplating moving his family back to the UK. He previously said: "I feel like Boxing Day 2022 was like a sliding door moment for us. "Our life should have been going in one direction, and yet, here I am, because of the actions of you and your co-offender taking away my family's right to expect peace, security, and safety within our family home. "Now I am forced to play a role: the role of a grieving husband, a victim of assault, and a father, trying to make his family feel safe in our home again." 7 7
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
'Devastated' husband learns the fate of his wife's killer after the murderer appealed his prison sentence
A teenager who appealed his guilty murder plea will be released from prison more than one year early. Emma Lovell, 41, was stabbed in the heart by a 17-year-old, who cannot be identified, during a home invasion at North Lakes, outside of Brisbane, on Boxing Day 2022. The teen who pleaded guilty to stabbing Ms Lovell in the heart and her husband, Lee, in the back was sentenced to 14 years in prison, the maximum sentence. At the time, children charged with murder could only be sentenced to 10 years behind bars unless the court deemed the crime especially heinous. 'Adult Crime, Adult Time' laws introduced by new premier David Crisafulli changed this sentence in December 2024 to a minimum non-parole period of 20 years. However, these new laws were not retroactive and the teen's appeal was considered under the previous laws. His lawyers cited errors in the judge's findings, lack of consideration of personal circumstances and that the sentence itself was 'manifestly excessive'. The state's new Attorney-General, Deb Frecklington, is now considering her options to make an appeal to the High Court. Mr Lovell insisted the initial sentence was not enough to begin with and said he was 'devastated' by the court's new ruling. 'I don't know what to say, I'm shocked that they can put more of a value to someone's freedom than someone's life,' he told the Courier Mail. 'I just don't feel justice has been served one bit for what happened to Emma. 'Seems like all you are doing now is saying to people to commit an offence and not much will happen.' Any crimes committed in Queensland before the passage of its new adult crime laws are still handled by the old system. Mr Lovell hoped the new laws would work to more effectively counter the state's youth crime wave. He accused the justice system of 'not doing its job' and added that the teen's appeal should have increased his sentence instead of reducing it. The Attorney-General said the decision was 'an unacceptable outcome' based on the nature of the crime. Ms Frecklington blamed 'Labor's weak laws'. She added that the murder was 'exactly' the reason her government moved quickly to drastically rewrite the laws concerning minimum mandatory life in prison. 'Under our laws this murderer would have been sentenced to life in prison,' Ms Frecklington said. Queensland Homicide Victims' Support Group chief executive officer Brett Thompson said he would support Ms Frecklington in considering an appeal. The teen murderer had racked up a total of 84 offences by the age of 17 and was reportedly found laughing about the crime after his arrest. His appeal was approved after two of three appeal justices agreed the sentence was 'manifestly excessive'.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Teenager who murdered British mother in her Australian home has sentence REDUCED - as family say they are 'broken' by the decision
The family of a British woman murdered during an invasion on her Australian home have been left 'broken' by the teen killer's sentence being reduced by almost 18 months on appeal. The boy, who cannot be named as he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family house in North Lakes, north of Brisbane, at about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022. Following a successful appeal on Friday, the teen will now serve a minimum of about eight years and four months in detention instead of about nine years and nine months before he is released under supervision. Victims of youth crime ambassador Lyndy Atkinson, who had worked with the Lovells since before the original sentencing, said the family now felt additional trauma. 'They are a broken family ... (the teen defendant) will be able to get out and live his best life,' she said. 'Lee Lovell has lost a wife, his two girls have lost a mother. To me, it is still on the side of the offender and victims are continually being left behind.' Queensland Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the appeal was an unacceptable outcome and claimed it was caused by the previous government's 'weak laws'. 'I am now looking at my options to make an appeal to the High Court,' she said. Queensland opposition leader Steven Miles said he did not want to 'score cheap political points' but was shocked by the decision and thinking of the family. Mrs Lovell's husband Lee, who was wounded during the home invasion, was unable to attend court on Friday when the appeal decision was handed down. The home invasion led to 'adult crime, adult time' changes in Queensland law that allow for youth offenders to face a mandatory life sentence for murder with a minimum 20 years before parole. 'The murder of Emma Lovell rocked the state and Queenslanders made it very clear enough is enough and change needed to occur,' Ms Frecklington said. 'The community and Emma's family will be devastated by this outcome and our thoughts are with them on another very difficult day they should never have had to endure.' Justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70 per cent of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be 'particularly heinous'. The Court of Appeal on Friday allowed the teen's appeal against the length of his sentence, with two of the three judges agreeing it was 'manifestly excessive'. In his dissenting opinion, Justice John Bond stated he was 'respectfully' not able to find the sentence unjust or plainly unreasonable. Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60 per cent. He cited the teen's guilty plea, 'genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation' as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70 per cent. The teen had appealed Justice Sullivan's 'particularly heinous' finding in a bid to get his overall sentence reduced to 10 years. However, Justice Boddice found Justice Sullivan's decision to impose the maximum overall sentence available at the time was correct as the offences were 'properly described as provoking a sense of outrage'. The teen now has five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served. The teen's male co-offender, also a juvenile, was acquitted of murder at a judge-only trial in October. He was found guilty of burglary and assaulting Mr Lovell, and in December he was sentenced to 18 months' detention - time he has served.
The Advertiser
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Family 'broken' by teen killer's sentence reduction
The family of a woman murdered during a home invasion have been left "broken" by the teen killer's sentence being reduced by almost 18 months on appeal. The boy, who cannot be named as he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family's house north of Brisbane about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022. Following a successful appeal on Friday, the teen will now serve a minimum of about eight years and four months in detention instead of about nine years and nine months before he is released under supervision. Victims of youth crime ambassador Lyndy Atkinson, who had worked with the Lovells since before the original sentencing, said the family now felt additional trauma. "They are a broken family ... (the teen defendant) will be able to get out and live his best life," she said. "Lee Lovell has lost a wife, his two girls have lost a mother. To me, it is still on the side of the offender and victims are continually being left behind." Queensland Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the appeal was an unacceptable outcome and claimed it was caused by the previous Labor government's "weak laws". "I am now looking at my options to make an appeal to the High Court," she said. Queensland opposition leader Steven Miles said he did not want to "score cheap political points" but was shocked by the decision and thinking of the family. Mrs Lovell's husband Lee, who was wounded during the home invasion, was unable to attend court on Friday when the appeal decision was handed down. The home invasion led to "adult crime, adult time"' changes in Queensland law that allow for youth offenders to face a mandatory life sentence for murder with a minimum 20 years before parole. "The murder of Emma Lovell rocked the state and Queenslanders made it very clear enough is enough and change needed to occur," Ms Frecklington said. "The community and Emma's family will be devastated by this outcome and our thoughts are with them on another very difficult day they should never have had to endure." Justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70 per cent of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be "particularly heinous". The Court of Appeal on Friday allowed the teen's appeal against the length of his sentence, with two of the three judges agreeing it was "manifestly excessive". In his dissenting opinion, Justice John Bond stated he was "respectfully" not able to find the sentence unjust or plainly unreasonable. Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60 per cent. He cited the teen's guilty plea, "genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation" as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70 per cent. The teen had appealed Justice Sullivan's "particularly heinous" finding in a bid to get his overall sentence reduced to 10 years. However, Justice Boddice found Justice Sullivan's decision to impose the maximum overall sentence available at the time was correct as the offences were "properly described as provoking a sense of outrage". The teen now has five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served. The teen's male co-offender, also a juvenile, was acquitted of murder at a judge-only trial in October. He was found guilty of burglary and assaulting Mr Lovell, and in December he was sentenced to 18 months' detention - time he has served. The family of a woman murdered during a home invasion have been left "broken" by the teen killer's sentence being reduced by almost 18 months on appeal. The boy, who cannot be named as he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family's house north of Brisbane about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022. Following a successful appeal on Friday, the teen will now serve a minimum of about eight years and four months in detention instead of about nine years and nine months before he is released under supervision. Victims of youth crime ambassador Lyndy Atkinson, who had worked with the Lovells since before the original sentencing, said the family now felt additional trauma. "They are a broken family ... (the teen defendant) will be able to get out and live his best life," she said. "Lee Lovell has lost a wife, his two girls have lost a mother. To me, it is still on the side of the offender and victims are continually being left behind." Queensland Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the appeal was an unacceptable outcome and claimed it was caused by the previous Labor government's "weak laws". "I am now looking at my options to make an appeal to the High Court," she said. Queensland opposition leader Steven Miles said he did not want to "score cheap political points" but was shocked by the decision and thinking of the family. Mrs Lovell's husband Lee, who was wounded during the home invasion, was unable to attend court on Friday when the appeal decision was handed down. The home invasion led to "adult crime, adult time"' changes in Queensland law that allow for youth offenders to face a mandatory life sentence for murder with a minimum 20 years before parole. "The murder of Emma Lovell rocked the state and Queenslanders made it very clear enough is enough and change needed to occur," Ms Frecklington said. "The community and Emma's family will be devastated by this outcome and our thoughts are with them on another very difficult day they should never have had to endure." Justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70 per cent of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be "particularly heinous". The Court of Appeal on Friday allowed the teen's appeal against the length of his sentence, with two of the three judges agreeing it was "manifestly excessive". In his dissenting opinion, Justice John Bond stated he was "respectfully" not able to find the sentence unjust or plainly unreasonable. Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60 per cent. He cited the teen's guilty plea, "genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation" as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70 per cent. The teen had appealed Justice Sullivan's "particularly heinous" finding in a bid to get his overall sentence reduced to 10 years. However, Justice Boddice found Justice Sullivan's decision to impose the maximum overall sentence available at the time was correct as the offences were "properly described as provoking a sense of outrage". The teen now has five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served. The teen's male co-offender, also a juvenile, was acquitted of murder at a judge-only trial in October. He was found guilty of burglary and assaulting Mr Lovell, and in December he was sentenced to 18 months' detention - time he has served. The family of a woman murdered during a home invasion have been left "broken" by the teen killer's sentence being reduced by almost 18 months on appeal. The boy, who cannot be named as he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family's house north of Brisbane about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022. Following a successful appeal on Friday, the teen will now serve a minimum of about eight years and four months in detention instead of about nine years and nine months before he is released under supervision. Victims of youth crime ambassador Lyndy Atkinson, who had worked with the Lovells since before the original sentencing, said the family now felt additional trauma. "They are a broken family ... (the teen defendant) will be able to get out and live his best life," she said. "Lee Lovell has lost a wife, his two girls have lost a mother. To me, it is still on the side of the offender and victims are continually being left behind." Queensland Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the appeal was an unacceptable outcome and claimed it was caused by the previous Labor government's "weak laws". "I am now looking at my options to make an appeal to the High Court," she said. Queensland opposition leader Steven Miles said he did not want to "score cheap political points" but was shocked by the decision and thinking of the family. Mrs Lovell's husband Lee, who was wounded during the home invasion, was unable to attend court on Friday when the appeal decision was handed down. The home invasion led to "adult crime, adult time"' changes in Queensland law that allow for youth offenders to face a mandatory life sentence for murder with a minimum 20 years before parole. "The murder of Emma Lovell rocked the state and Queenslanders made it very clear enough is enough and change needed to occur," Ms Frecklington said. "The community and Emma's family will be devastated by this outcome and our thoughts are with them on another very difficult day they should never have had to endure." Justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70 per cent of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be "particularly heinous". The Court of Appeal on Friday allowed the teen's appeal against the length of his sentence, with two of the three judges agreeing it was "manifestly excessive". In his dissenting opinion, Justice John Bond stated he was "respectfully" not able to find the sentence unjust or plainly unreasonable. Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60 per cent. He cited the teen's guilty plea, "genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation" as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70 per cent. The teen had appealed Justice Sullivan's "particularly heinous" finding in a bid to get his overall sentence reduced to 10 years. However, Justice Boddice found Justice Sullivan's decision to impose the maximum overall sentence available at the time was correct as the offences were "properly described as provoking a sense of outrage". The teen now has five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served. The teen's male co-offender, also a juvenile, was acquitted of murder at a judge-only trial in October. He was found guilty of burglary and assaulting Mr Lovell, and in December he was sentenced to 18 months' detention - time he has served. The family of a woman murdered during a home invasion have been left "broken" by the teen killer's sentence being reduced by almost 18 months on appeal. The boy, who cannot be named as he was aged 17 at the time of the offences, fatally stabbed Emma Lovell in the heart after he broke into her family's house north of Brisbane about 11.30pm on Boxing Day in 2022. Following a successful appeal on Friday, the teen will now serve a minimum of about eight years and four months in detention instead of about nine years and nine months before he is released under supervision. Victims of youth crime ambassador Lyndy Atkinson, who had worked with the Lovells since before the original sentencing, said the family now felt additional trauma. "They are a broken family ... (the teen defendant) will be able to get out and live his best life," she said. "Lee Lovell has lost a wife, his two girls have lost a mother. To me, it is still on the side of the offender and victims are continually being left behind." Queensland Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the appeal was an unacceptable outcome and claimed it was caused by the previous Labor government's "weak laws". "I am now looking at my options to make an appeal to the High Court," she said. Queensland opposition leader Steven Miles said he did not want to "score cheap political points" but was shocked by the decision and thinking of the family. Mrs Lovell's husband Lee, who was wounded during the home invasion, was unable to attend court on Friday when the appeal decision was handed down. The home invasion led to "adult crime, adult time"' changes in Queensland law that allow for youth offenders to face a mandatory life sentence for murder with a minimum 20 years before parole. "The murder of Emma Lovell rocked the state and Queenslanders made it very clear enough is enough and change needed to occur," Ms Frecklington said. "The community and Emma's family will be devastated by this outcome and our thoughts are with them on another very difficult day they should never have had to endure." Justice Tom Sullivan in May 2024 sentenced the teen, then aged 19, to a maximum of 14 years with a requirement to serve 70 per cent of that time in detention, after he found the crime to be "particularly heinous". The Court of Appeal on Friday allowed the teen's appeal against the length of his sentence, with two of the three judges agreeing it was "manifestly excessive". In his dissenting opinion, Justice John Bond stated he was "respectfully" not able to find the sentence unjust or plainly unreasonable. Justice David Boddice found the 14-year sentence should stand but reduced the detention period to 60 per cent. He cited the teen's guilty plea, "genuine remorse and prospects of rehabilitation" as special circumstances justifying his release from detention after serving less than the statutory 70 per cent. The teen had appealed Justice Sullivan's "particularly heinous" finding in a bid to get his overall sentence reduced to 10 years. However, Justice Boddice found Justice Sullivan's decision to impose the maximum overall sentence available at the time was correct as the offences were "properly described as provoking a sense of outrage". The teen now has five years left to serve in detention after 500 days of pre-sentence custody in May 2024 were recognised as time served. The teen's male co-offender, also a juvenile, was acquitted of murder at a judge-only trial in October. He was found guilty of burglary and assaulting Mr Lovell, and in December he was sentenced to 18 months' detention - time he has served.
Sky News
4 days ago
- Sky News
Emma Lovell: Killer of British mother in Australia eligible for earlier release after appeal
A teenager who stabbed a British mother to death in Australia after breaking into her home will be eligible for early release after successfully appealing against his sentence. Emma Lovell was killed in North Lakes, Queensland, on Boxing Day in 2022 while fending off two intruders with her husband. The 41-year-old mother of two died of a single stab wound to the heart. She had emigrated to Australia from Ipswich in 2011 with her husband Lee, who survived the attack, along with their daughters. Her attacker, who was 17 at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to her murder last year and was jailed for 14 years, with 70% of the sentence to be served before being eligible for supervised release. He launched an appeal against the sentence, arguing it was "manifestly excessive". Three judges at Queensland Court of Appeal on Friday reduced the period the killer must spend in jail to 60%. The judges agreed that the man's guilty plea, his expressed remorse, and his prospects for rehabilitation warranted cutting his sentence. He will now be eligible for release after serving eight years and five months in prison, a reduction of 17 months. Justice Tom Sullivan, who handed down the sentence at Brisbane's Supreme Court in May last year, told the man he had committed a "particularly heinous offence" after breaking into the Lovells' property armed with a knife alongside another boy. The court heard the teenage killer had been convicted of 84 offences since he was 15, including 16 involving unlawful entry or attempted entry of properties, but none had been violent. He had been placed on a probation order three times, but had not previously been ordered to serve detention. The boy turned to alcohol and drugs after the death of his grandmother when he was 14, the court was told. The judge said he had taken into account the teenager's childhood of "deprivation" but also had to consider "the seriousness of the offending". The judge described Ms Lovell as "an energetic and beloved mother, wife, daughter and sister". He added: "The Lovells were ordinary citizens enjoying their family life in their home, where they were entitled to feel safe. What occurred on that Boxing Day evening violated that entirely." The then 19-year-old defendant had also pleaded guilty to burglary, malicious acts with intent and assault occasioning bodily harm over an attack on Mr Lovell. The second teenager involved in the burglary, who also cannot be named as he was 17 at the time, was found guilty of burglary and assault. He was sentenced to 18 months in jail, with the time he spent in detention before sentencing counting as time served.
