The Murder of Sophie Lancaster
Sophie Lancaster was a 20-year-old woman from Lancashire. She was hoping to study English at Accrington and Rossendale College. Sophie had been dating 21-year-old Robert Maltby for three years, the couple were described as goths.
On Saturday 11th August 2007 Sophie and Robert were returning home as walked through Stubbylee Park. At around 1.10- 1.20 am the pair passed the skate park when a group of teenagers followed them and assaulted Robert who was knocked unconscious. Sophie attempted to shield her boyfriend from further attacks, the group began to hit and kick her too. A witness later told police "They were running over and just kicking her in the head and jumping up and down on her head". Police were quickly called to the scene and found that the couple's injuries were so severe they could not tell which was the female and which was the male victim. Both were immediately rushed to hospital. Robert gradually recovered from his injuries. Sophie died from damage sustained during the violent attack.
The motives for the attacks were Sophie and Robert's appearance and their gothic (or 'mosher') style of dressing. Witnesses said that the killers told their friends afterwards that they had 'done summat good,' and were heard saying "There's two moshers nearly dead up Bacup park – you wanna see them – they're a right mess". One witness also said, when calling emergency services after witnessing the attack, "We need... we need an ambulance at Bacup Park, this mosher has just been banged because he's a mosher". The trial opened with the prosecution's statement that "Sophie and Robert were singled out not for anything they had said or done, but because they looked and dressed differently". The park had been identified previously as locals as a place used by 'drunken, violent yobs' who drank underage and committed vandalism.
On 6th September 2007, five suspects were charged with the murder of Sophie Lancaster and grievous bodily harm of Robert Maltby. At trial, the murder charges were dropped for three of the five defendants, Ryan Herbert pleaded guilty to murder and Brendan Harris pleaded not guilty. Both Herbert and Harris were found guilty and their names, which were previously concealed, were made public. They received life sentences with recommendations of 16 years and three months and 18 years respectively. The three other defendants were brothers Joseph and Danny Hulme, who were sentenced to 5 years and ten months each, and Daniel Mallett, sentenced to 4 years and four months.