Brian Healless, the 18-year-old British man convicted of murdering fellow 18-year-old Alex Davies, a gay man, will spend the next 24 years in prison for his crime.
Judge Mark Brown labeled Healless a “cold-blooded killer,” and rejected arguments by Healless’ attorneys that he should receive a reduced sentence. Healless’ lawyers had argued that the killer suffers from schizophrenia and therefore deserved a reduced sentence.
“You were messaging him on Grindr and Instagram for the purpose of meeting him at a remote location,” Brown told Healless in the sentencing. “You were undoubtedly setting him up to kill and you are a manipulative, calculating and devious person.” Brown also called Davies a “kind-hearted, gentle and hard-working young man who would never have harmed anyone.” He then added: “He had just been promoted at work and will never have the chance to fulfill his potential in life.”
Related: A murderer in Nigeria says he can’t be gay because he’s a plumber. Really.
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Healless met Davies last April on Grindr, advising Davies that he was not out and preferred a discreet hookup in a remote location. Upon meeting, Healless attacked Davies, punching and kicking him in the face as well as stabbing him 128 times. The stabbings and beatings didn’t actually kill Davies; rather, he asphyxiated as Healless dragged him face down through mud. Police found his body two days later.
A search of Healless’ home revealed that he had targeted numerous men on Grindr with a similar pretense. Data on his computer also uncovered that he had researched how to wipe the memory of a cell phone–the same model as Davies’–and vulnerabilities in the skull. In his sentencing, Judge Brown noted these facts, and accused Healless of targeting gay men as a potential serial killer.
Dick Gozinia
Wonder why his sentence was just 24 years? What a horrible way for Davies to die.
Chrisk
I don’t know either since that will put him back out on the streets by 50. There’s no way you can rehabilitate something like that either. Execution would be more humane.
iminheatlikeacat
It’s the UK. There is no way he will serve those full 24 years. I’d say at the most, 15, unless he commits another crime whilst in prison.
derek mcgillicuddy
Life imprisonment terms are forbidden for persons under 21 years of age.
Thomas
In the UK the sentence for a young person can last as long as the sentence for an adult for the same offence (but not longer). This includes life sentences.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
He tried to hook with four guys prior to that poor soul….
While he is a certified nutbags, blame must also be placed on the noxious right-wing scumbag Evangelical lunatics who decry Gays and cast us as the root of all evil and catastrophes in this world….
Unstable lunatics like this guy with internalized homophobia lash out and act in savage and unpredictable ways because can’t handle the fact they are gay and they were afraid to be cast as some sort of a demon if they do come out…..
marion
Calm down Sgt. Slaughter!
This is the UK! Evangelicals have no influence, and bare literally zero blame.
There is no evidence of internalised homophobia, more likely just a sick and twisted individual with masochistic tendencies.
Perhaps you should think about context before responding like a over the top 1980’s WWF wrestler!
Felecia
Well, Healless is soon going to be the Fresh Meat/Prom Date of cellblock 5…how fortunate that he has 24 whole years to work on his ‘coming out’ issues, lol…and I’m sure the GayForTheStay Big Musclebound Daddies in there will have NO problem helping him, either…nice! 🙂
Hussain-TheCanadian
We dont know if hes gay, or quite simply an insane serial killer in the making and was caught early.
I appreciate the words of the judge, what happened was monstrous, but Healless should be executed. He doesnt deserve to live, his life is forfeit the moment he murdered Alex.
Heywood Jablowme
@Hussain: Your continual rabid bleating for the death penalty is certainly the most “Muslim” thing about you! Your own country abolished the death penalty and hasn’t executed anyone since 1962; perhaps you should agitate about that at home instead of opining about what other countries should do. Or maybe you’d be happier living in Texas where they execute innocent men on a regular basis.
Hussain-TheCanadian
Whatever queen, I disagree with my government when it comes to the death penalty, I think we should bring it back and apply it in open/shut cases like this one.
We know who and how he did it, there is no dispute what so ever that Brain is the murderer. If it makes you feel better to want to add another layer of judges to evaluate if the death penalty is appropriate, fine, but to pretend that he deserves to live is beyond ridiculous.
Also I find it funny that you’ve put yourself as the judge of what a Muslim out to look like, I think Al-Quaeda is still recruiting, they love people who think like you Heywood.
Chrisk
I agree that the death penalty would be nice to apply here. I’d hate to see it released back on the streets. He’ll be out before the age of 50. You can’t rehabilitate a natural born killer like this.
Heywood Jablowme
Agree that 24 years is way too short. Murder sentences in the U.K. – AND Canada – tend to be way too short. We see that over and over, in rather mind-boggling news reports.
But what is the point of a Canadian citizen always, always, always, continually complaining about the lack of a death penalty – under a screen name, on an obscure site like Queerty! Hussian, do you do ANYTHING at home about this issue? Anything at all? Write an email to your M.P., anything? Of course you don’t. So what’s the point of doing it here?
Oh and btw, your religion is stupid! Of course if you give it up (very publicly) or if you convert to something else, one of your peace-loving fellow Muslims will want to kill you.
Hussain-TheCanadian
You make alot of assumptions Heywood; firstly I’m sharing my opinion, I’m not leading an advocacy group aiming at changing the law of Canada, the road to doing so is long, and I’m not interested in that. I’m content in pointing out the absurdity of allowing a murderer, who lured, stabbed over 20 times a fellow human being, and then dragged his barely breathing body until he died, to live in prison. I disagree with this absurdity, and I point it out all the time on the CBC news forum, probably the largest online Canadian forum.
I just don’t understand why are you bothered by my opinion, I only advocated the death penalty for the most heinous and gruesome crimes, like the one in this article. I’m not advocating for it to be applied nonchalantly as we see it done in many American states.
Finally, most muslims are peace loving, they just doing like your ridiculous federal government aiding their dictatorships with weapons, political and monetary support, let alone bombing their countries.
Your @sshole president placed tariffs on Canada, and now decided to move a portion of your troops to our border, and that triggered many canadians against your government and atleast half of the american citizenry that calls themselves “Republicans “. So imagine the animosity and hatred that would take root here if you started coveting our natural resources and started bombing us.
You can call Muslims and their religion whatever, but dont forget the irony that you’re a citizen of one of the most blood thirsty countries on the planet, with savages as your politicians, who have not seen a war they didnt liked, or a country to invade and bomb…….Iraq, the birth place of my parents, says hello.
Baldmedic64
If there’s a fight in the playground after school between you guys… can I offer to hold your school bags?
thisisnotreal
Nice to know that the going rate for one of our entire gay lives is worth 24 of theirs….
Kangol2
Not only did this Healless creep murder this poor gay man (and was trying to find others), but he essentially tortured him to death by brutally stabbing him and then asphyxiating him by dragging. I would have thought that would merit a longer sentence than 24 years, but clearly I was wrong, whatever Britain’s judicial sentencing guidelines might or might not be.
Prax07
Does the UK penal system not do hangings anymore? They should restart with him if they don’t.
ricdardc1
…easy 1 carton of cigerette’s prison bitch, makeup & prison made bra included.