Kevin Madden, 16, was a habitual school truant who used to claim that he drank blood. Nevertheless, his 12-year-old brother, Johnathon Madden, looked up to him.
On the 25th of November, 2003, Kevin, his friend, 15-year-old Timothy Ferriman, and another unnamed friend, played hooky from school and went to Kevin’s home on Dawes Road. Here, they drank alcohol and smoked before completely trashing the house with baseball bats. At the time, Kevin’s mother and stepfather were at work and Johnathon was at class. Kevin told his friends that he planned on killing his family when they returned and Timothy called his girlfriend to brag about what he and his friends intended on doing.
His girlfriend became worried and called back and recorded a conversation between the three boasting about their murderous plan. Afterwards, she called the police but it was too late. When Johnathon arrived home, he was assaulted and then shoved into the basement by his brother and his two friends. In the basement, the teenagers unleashed a violent attack on the young boy. Timothy then handed Kevin a butcher knife; he subsequently stabbed and slashed his brother to death. Johnathon sustained 71 stab wounds; his voice box and carotid artery were slashed. Following the murder, the teenagers waited for Kevin’s stepfather to come home and they then attacked him with a baseball bat and knife. Thankfully, he managed to escape.
The three boys were arrested within 24 hours. During his trial, Kevin stated that “people who did not know Johnathon should not be concerned about what happened to him.” Kevin was found guilty of first degree murder while Timothy was found guilty of manslaughter. The third teenager was acquitted of all charges. Kevin was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 10 years. Timothy was sentenced to two years in a youth facility followed by three years probation.
