Killers jailed for life

Three sadistic young killers who beat a disabled man to death were today jailed for life.

Brent Martin, 23, was punched, kicked, head-butted and stamped on during an ordeal last August which stretched one-and-a-half miles across the Sunderland housing estate where he lived, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

Mr Martin’s family cheered as Judge John Milford jailed ringleader William Hughes, 22, for a minimum of 22 years while accomplices Marcus Miller, 16, will serve at least 15 years, and Stephen Bonallie, 17, at least 18 years.

Hughes, from Washington Road, Sunderland, and Miller, from Baxter Road, pleaded guilty to murder at a previous hearing. Bonallie, from Birtley Ave, Sunderland, denied the charge but was convicted by a jury at Newcastle Crown Court.

Sentencing the trio, the judge said he had considered setting deterrent sentences because of the sadistic nature of the attack, but decided against it.
But after the case, Julie Newman, chair of the United Kingdom’s Disabled People’s Council, said she was “disapointed” that the judge had not pointed out that the crime was aggravated by hatred towards Mr Martin’s impairment.

She said the sentencing was “an opportunity lost” to highlight the “targeting of a vulnerable disabled person”.

She added: “It had a context. We can’t afford to forget the context.”

Disability Now’s editor, Ian Macrae, welcomed the long sentences handed to the trio but said he was “disappointed that the judge did not mention the fact that Mr Martin was clearly targeted because he was disabled and that his horrific murder was aggravated by hatred towards his impairment”.

“Murders motivated by homophobia and racism often attract far stiffer sentences. All such horrific crimes must be treated equally by the criminal justice system.”

Katharine Quarmby, Disability Now’s news editor, who has been investigating disability hate crime for the past seven months, added: “My latest research demonstrates that those responsible for the murders of disabled people routinely have lighter sentences imposed upon them than those responsible for the equally horrific crimes of racially aggravated murder or homophobic murder.”

Deborah Kitson, director of the Ann Craft Trust, said she felt “amazing disappointment and frustration that disability hate crime seems to have been overlooked”.

She said: “There is no reference to the fact that they were perhaps doing it from the angle of how they felt about disability.”
Judge Milford had told the court that Mr Martin was a “gentle and caring person'' with a long history of mental health problems and learning difficulties.

When he left in-patient hospital treatment in May last year, he looked for friends his own age in the area. “Sadly, he made poor choices,'' the judge said.

Toby Hedworth QC, prosecuting, had told the court that Mr Martin had wanted to be friends with the gang of youngsters and had spent most of the £3,000 he saved up in his nine years in  hospital by buying  drink and cigarettes for them. But they turned on him savagely. 

Mr Hedworth said: “They behaved like a pack of animals as they repeatedly punched, head-butted, kicked, stamped on Brent Martin, who never lifted an aggressive finger towards one of them, and they did so until he was dead. They did so for their own sport.''

Miller and Bonallie were trained boxers, who knew the force of their actions, the court heard.

Indeed, the three boasted of their prowess and egged each other on to knock Mr Martin out with £5 bets.

Even after being beaten, Mr Martin would shake hands with his attackers and say they were his friends.

Mr Martin suffered catastrophic brain damage and died in hospital, surrounded by his family, including his mother Brenda and twin sister Danielle. A post-mortem showed he suffered 18  blows to the head and neck.

After their violent frenzy, the trio posed for pictures. 

Ben Nolan QC, defending Miller, blamed the availability of cheap alcohol.