Call to review teenage killers' sentences rejected

Harley Brown, 17, was stabbed to death in Huddersfield in February 2023

An appeal to extend the jail sentences of two teenagers convicted of murdering a 17-year-old boy has been rejected.

Harley Brown was stabbed to death in Huddersfield in February 2023.

Killers Zak Robinson, 17, and a 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named due to his age, were both jailed for life in December, with minimum terms of 14 years and six months and 10 years and three months respectively.

The case was referred for review under the Unduly Lenient Sentences Scheme however the Attorney General's Office (AGO) confirmed the request had been turned down.

Zak Robinson was given a minimum jail term of 14 years and six months when sentenced in December.

During the trail, a court heard the two killers were "under the influence of nitrous oxide" when they chased Harley along King's Mill Lane and then "brutally "attacked him with knives.

In a statement the AGO said Robert Coutts, the Solicitor General for England and Wales, had ruled the jail terms would not be reviewed.

A spokesperson said: "The Solicitor General was shocked by this case and wishes to express his sympathies to Harley Brown’s family.

"After careful consideration the Solicitor General has concluded that this case cannot properly be referred to the Court of Appeal."

The spokesperson said a referral could only be made if a sentence is "unduly lenient" and limited to circumstances where a judge has made a "gross error" or imposed a term "outside the range of sentences reasonably available".

They added: "The threshold is a high one, and the test was not met in this case."