![]() ![]() The victim’s father, John Woodley, said his heart had been broken into a million pieces. She also commended the bravery of numerous young people who witnessed events and came forward to give evidence. “Look at the pain this incident has caused – not only could you take away someone else’s future and destroy the lives of their loved ones, but also your own and those of your family and friends.” “I want to send an unequivocal message to anyone who chooses to carry a weapon of any kind or believes that violence is acceptable – the consequences can be devastating. One of the teenagers had pleaded guilty to manslaughter, admitting that he stabbed Woodley but denying that he intended to kill him.ĭet Ch Insp Joanne Brooks, the senior investigating officer on the case, said dozens of lives had been destroyed by the events of 16 October 2021. One defendant asked Woodley “if he was starting … this seems to be one of the trivial reasons for the group attack”.Īll the defendants had also been charged with an alternative count of manslaughter. There had been an incident in which a girl was hit and Woodley asked one boy if he knew why, the jury heard. ![]() The group, he said, “not only attacked him but prevented him from escaping and other people from helping him”. The 10 defendants, then aged between 14 and 17, were also there and were looking for trouble, the jury heard.Īfter the fair, the gang “surrounded and isolated” Woodley, covering their heads as they prepared to attack him, prosecutor Mark McKone QC said. In October last year, Woodley and his girlfriend had been at the Houghton Feast, an annual festival held in Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne and Wear. We will never be able to share treasured family moments with our ‘cheeky chappy blue-eyed boy’ ever again.” “No parent, loved one or friend should suffer someone going to a fair and losing them forever. We feel imprisoned by our grief and trauma. We cannot see a way of recovering from this. The trauma of reliving this whole incident over a long trial has had a devastating effect on us all. “The devastation of losing Jack is immense and far-reaching. “We were all very proud of Jack and this should have been a very exciting time in his life,” she said. Woodley’s mother, Zoey McGill, said that as well her son securing his own accommodation, he was about to start a new job at Amazon. On Wednesday, after a 78-day trial at Newcastle crown court, a jury found all of the boys, who cannot be identified, guilty. ![]()
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