21 January 2024 , 14:04
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A teenage murderer was released from prison just months before he celebrated killing a young man.
Just moments after he fatally injured 18-year-old Jack Norton, Brandon Price, 19, was seen celebrating and boasting: "You didn't think we'd do it, we've f*****g done it". His cruel killing happened just three months after he got out of a young offenders institution, where he had been since 2020 having committed a series of thefts.
He had been sentenced to seven years and nine months in detention for a series of robberies on February 24, 2020. He served more than two-and-a-half years before he was released on licence on September 7, 2022.
He quickly went on to stab Jack in the chest, fatally wounding him. The shocking details of Price's life of crime were shared in a hearing at Wolverhampton Crown Court this week. He was back in court when a mistake with his sentence came to light.
Jack Norton, also known as Jack Lowe, was killed in a park (No credit)Earlier this month, Price was jailed for life with a minimum serving time of 20 years for murder and carrying a blade. During the murder trial, jurors heard how Price and his 16 year old accomplice, who cannot be named due to legal reasons, targeted Jack 'without warning' in a 'savage attack'.
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Also known as Jack Lowe, the victim was walking in Wednesbury, West Midlands with two female friends when he came across his killers. The two groups spent time together before heading to a field just before 9pm.
The 16-year-old told Jack he wanted to see his "guts and juices", light a fire and throw him on it, and learn how to drive so he could run Jack over, the court heard. When Jack decided to leave and went to fist-bump the then 18-year-old Price as a goodbye, he was stabbed.
The 16-year-old, who had brought the knife, ran from the park with Price, with both laughing as Jack's distressed friends screamed for help. Footage showed the moment the two murderers seemingly 'laughed and whooped' in the street as they 'celebrated' their kill. They could be seen jumping around with 'excitement' as they left Jack for dead, the court heard.
During the trial, the prosecution suggested that other clips showed the pair making 'stab motions' as they 're-enacted what had happened'. West Midlands Police previously said the motive for the 'savage and unprovoked attack' is still unknown.
The 16-year-old boy was found guilty of murder and possession of a bladed article. He was sentenced to life, with a minimum term of 15 years. His sentence remained unchanged.
When arrested by police over the killing, Price was recalled to prison to serve the remainder of his robbery sentence behind bars. He served 388 days before he was sentenced for Jack's murder. Price was told these days behind bars would count towards his minimum term of 20 years. When a defendant is refused bail and is facing trial, usually the time spent on remand counts towards the final sentence imposed.
Brandon Price celebrated after killing Jack Norton (WMP)But in Price's case, an error was made. He was actually recalled on licence to serve the remainder of his robbery sentence. It means those 388 days should not have been factored into the sentence he received for Jack's murder, Judge Chambers said.
Phil Bradley, defending, put it to the judge that a 'downward adjustment' would have been made at Price's sentence hearing for murder had this been known to the court. Judge Chambers said he would make an 'adjustment to the minimum term' by 200 days. On Thursday, January 18, the judge reduced Price's minimum term to 19 years and 165 days