Sophie Lancaster’s mum speaks out after her daughter’s killer has minimum jail term cut

News broke yesterday that one of the killers of Sophie Lancaster has had his minimum jail term reduced because he’s made ‘exceptional progress’ in prison.

Sophie was attacked in a park in Lancashire back in 2007, after she rushed to protect her boyfriend from a gang of youths – the pair were ‘savagely and mercilessly’ beaten because they were dressed as goths.

Ryan Herbert and Brendan Harris were part of the ‘feral’ gang who attacked Sophie, 20, and her boyfriend Robert Maltby for ‘dressing differently’, leaving Sophie unconscious. Mr Maltby survived – but with terrible injuries – and sadly two weeks later Sophie died in hospital, the Manchester Evening News reports.

Ryan Herbert – Credit: Lancashire Police

Herbert – who was 16 at the time – was sentenced to a life sentence with a minimum of 16 years and three months (later reduced to 15-and-a-half years on appeal) for the attack in Stubbylee Park, Bacup, in the early hours of August 11th 2007.

Now 28, Herbert had his sentence reduced even further yesterday by a High Court judge, to 14 and a half years, with the judge saying he’s making ‘exceptional progress’ in prison, including with his education – this means Herbert could apply for parole as early as February 2022.

Harris was also found guilty of murder and was jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years – his case was also reviewed by a judge, but he was not found to have made enough progress to have a sentence reduction.

Now Sophie Lancaster’s mum has said she thinks there’s ‘no justice’. Sylvia Lancaster has become a well-known hate crime campaigner since her daughter’s death, and runs a charity in Sophie’s name.

Family photo of Sophie Lancaster

Sylvia told the Manchester Evening News: “I was told this morning. It’s been going on for about 18 months, so I was aware it was potentially in a pipeline. But it was still a big shock. I just think where’s the justice?

“It’s very sad this whole process seems to be about the victims. It’s all about the perpetrator. I am glad he’s doing well in prison and hopefully he’s changed. But he was given a sentence and he should serve it in my opinion.

“They say he’s been doing these courses, that’s good, but my daughter never got the chance to do hers. It just doesn’t seem right he should have time deducted. I just think it makes a mockery of justice.”

She added: “In my eyes it is life for a life. A life sentence if you have taken a life and at the end of the day he has taken a life. He may have been 16 but he was old enough to know what he was doing and he should serve the consequences for it.

“The original judge did all he could, gave them as much as he could, and we were very grateful for that now it feels like other people, who have no idea, are chipping away at it.”