Teenager sentenced to 14 years for ‘atrocious’ murder of Emma Lovell during Queensland home invasion

A teenager has been sentenced to 14 years’ in jail for the “particularly heinous” murder of Emma Lovell in Brisbane in 2022.

The Queensland supreme court justice Tom Sullivan said the then 17-year-old, who is now 19, hurt more than just the two people he had stabbed – Emma and her husband, Lee Lovell – but had left a “deep impact” on their two daughters as well.

“No sentence which this court will impose will ever see adequately addressed the devastating effect on the Lovell family … in respect of the loss of Mrs Lovell,” Sullivan said.

The young man cannot be named due to his age at the time of the offence. He pleaded guilty to four charges, including murder, committed at about 11.30pm on Boxing Day 2022 at the family’s North Lakes home.

The teen will be required to serve at least 70% of his 14-year detention order, including the more than 500 days he has already spent in custody.

The sentencing turned heavily on whether the matter was considered “particularly heinous”. Under Queensland law, children can typically only be sentenced to a maximum 10-year sentence, even for murder.

Sullivan said he was satisfied that the offence was unusually severe, in part because the juvenile had an extensive criminal record, including breaking into 16 structures, seven of them homes.

None of the previous offences involved violence.

Sullivan said the young man had struck out with an 11cm knife three times, hitting Emma Lovell on his third strike. He also stabbed Lee Lovell in the back and kicked him in the head while on the ground. The judge said some of the attack was “gratuitous” and not committed in an attempt to escape.

The Lovells’ teenage daughters were standing over their mother’s body sobbing when police and paramedics arrived and open heart surgery was performed on the front lawn in an attempt to save her life, Sullivan said.

“It is correct to describe the offence in this case as atrocious and one which would create a sense of outrage in the general community,” he said.

Speaking to media outside court, Lee Lovell said nothing would bring back his wife.

He had hoped for a life sentence, but said he was pleased his attacker was sentenced to more than a decade behind bars.

“I suppose I’d like to think that going forwards this will help other people. Set a new precedent maybe,” he said.

Sullivan also took into account what he called the “deprivation” of the killer’s upbringing, which featured violence, the death of a close friend he called his brother, the death of his grandmother, and drug and alcohol abuse. He also took into account his early plea and expressions of remorse, which he accepted as genuine.

The teenager also pleaded guilty to armed burglary at night while in company, malicious act with intent and assault in company causing bodily harm. He was sentenced to up to three years for the lesser offences, with the time to be served concurrently.

An alleged co-offender has yet to enter a plea.

With reporting by Australian Associated Press.