Teenager involved in burglary in which British mother Emma Lovell was stabbed to death in front of her husband walks FREE despite conviction

A teenager who broke into a British mother’s home along with another boy who stabbed her to death has been released despite being convicted for his role in the fatal home invasion.

Emma Lovell, 41, was stabbed outside her property near Brisbane on the night of December 26, 2022, during a home invasion by two 17-year-old boys.

CCTV captured both teenagers arguing with Mrs Lovell and her husband before the fight spilled into the driveway of the family home, where one of the attackers stabbed her in the chest.

The attacker who inflicted the fatal wound pleaded guilty to her murder and was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

However, his co-accused was acquitted of murder and instead convicted of burglary and assault occasioning bodily harm in company at a judge-only trial in October.

The now 19-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was also charged with a series of other crimes committed in the months leading up to the burglary, including raids on other homes.

Judge Michael Copley sentenced him to 18 months in prison. He was released following his conviction on Wednesday after spending nearly two years in custody awaiting sentencing.

Emma’s husband Lee shared his frustration at what he said was a lenient punishment for the teenager, arguing that he should have received the same sentence as his co-offender.

Mr and Mrs Lovell, both British, moved to Australia from Ipswich in 2011 after first visiting the country in 2002.

“Australia was supposed to be our dream come true, but I can’t help but feel completely abandoned and broken,” Lovell said in court on Wednesday.

The father-of-two said his daughters’ lives would never be the same and revealed he is now considering moving his family back to Britain.

“I feel like Boxing Day 2022 was a sliding door moment for us,” he said as he addressed the teenage offender in court.

“Our lives were supposed to be headed in one direction and yet here I am, because of the actions of you and your accomplice who are taking away my family’s right to expect peace, security and safety in our family home.

“Now I’m forced to play a role: the role of a grieving husband, abuse victim and father, trying to make his family feel safe in our home again.”

The prosecutor had requested a probation period of up to 12 months after the release of the young offender, out of concern for the safety of the community.

Crown prosecutor David Nardone cited his “fairly lengthy criminal history” of more than 100 offences. The Guardian reports, including other cases of home burglaries.

The teen’s lawyer argued that he had “expressed remorse and concern about the consequences of the burglary and entered Lovell’s home” and was trying to turn his life around.

The judge also noted that he had experienced a turbulent home life, that he had grown up in a home full of drug use and domestic violence, and that his father had been in and out of prison.

“None of this excuses your offending, but it places it in a wider context,” Judge Copley said.

In his sentencing, Supreme Court Justice Michael Copley revealed that the words “I’ll kill you” could be heard in the audio from the CCTV footage of the incident, along with the word “stop” being repeatedly shouted, reported The Australian.

The legal team for the teenager convicted today argued that their client was the one who shouted ‘stop’ during the attack.

The court heard how Mr and Mrs Lovell had tried to fend off the intruders after being woken by their dogs barking at around 11.30pm on Boxing Day 2022.

Mr Lovell was also stabbed during a ‘physical struggle right outside the front door’ which then moved to the front garden where his wife was fatally stabbed.

Emma, ​​originally from Hasketon, moved to Australia to have a “better life” for her family, according to her brother David Angel, who spoke to the BBC.

The couple and their daughters Kassie and Scarlett, then 14 and 15, celebrated Christmas Day 2022 by eating a special meal on the local beach.

Her husband wrote in a Facebook post on Christmas Day 2022, the day before she died: “So for the first time in eleven years we spent Christmas Day at the beach and even managed to cook some bacon and eggs! ‘

‘I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas day with loved ones and friends.’

Hours after the post – when the family had returned to their bungalow in North Lakes, Brisbane – they woke up to find intruders in the hallway.

Mr Lovell had just forced one of the men out of the house when he heard his daughter say ‘mummy is bleeding’.

“I remember thinking at the time, ‘I can’t die, I can’t leave the children orphans,’” ​​he recalls.

Mr Lovell called his late wife “beautiful, wonderful” and said he often burst into tears over the pain of losing her.

“Emma was the glue in our family, she was funny, smart, so caring and would do anything for anyone,” Lovell previously told Daily Mail Australia.

“She died trying to protect me and our family.”