Two British teenagers accused of battering an alcoholic woman to death in 2014 have been sentenced to life in prison.
The two girls, now 15, were convicted of murdering 39-year-old Angela Wrightson on April 5 after an eight-week crown court trial in Leeds, England, the Guardian reported. On April 7, they were both sentenced to life in prison. They are required to serve a minimum of 15 years of their sentence.
The two girls, who have not been identified by the media, were accused of beating Wrightson to death in her home in Hartlepool, England, on Dec. 8, 2014. Wrightston was reportedly an alcoholic and described as vulnerable.
The girls, who were 13 and 14 at the time, allegedly began the attack around 9 p.m. that day. During the violent assault, they battered the woman with various household objects including a television set, a shovel, a coffee table, a computer printer, a kettle, and a wooden stick studded with screws.
The girls allegedly paused the attack to take pictures of themselves with a smartphone and send them to friends through Snapchat. One photo taken during the attack shows the two girls smiling and looking at the camera with Wrightson sitting slumped on her sofa in the background with bruises on her face.
The picture was posted with the caption, "Nah xx."
They reportedly left Wrightson's home around 11 p.m. to visit a friend but then returned at 2 a.m. and continued to beat her for two more hours. After the attack, they reportedly stripped Wrightson's unconscious body half-naked on her sofa and defiled it.
The two teens then called police and asked for a ride home around 4 a.m.
Wrightson, who suffered 100 injuries in the assault, was later found dead in the blood-spattered front room of her home.
The girls, who were both in the custody of social services at the time, had reportedly run away from their respective care homes a total of 18 times in the month leading up to the assault.
The victim was reportedly an acquaintance of the two girls who frequently bought them alcohol and allowed them to stay in her home.
After the 14-year-old girl's arrest, police found a disturbing drawing in the bedroom of her care home that depicted a smiling stick figure violently stabbing another with what appeared to be a knife, according to the Daily Mail. The girl reportedly drew the picture in the week before the murder.
The girl, who has been described by her social workers as the most volatile young person they had ever met, had been advised to draw pictures to help calm her mood.
The teen reportedly tried to visit her mother on the day of the murder only to be turned away and told to "F--- off and kill yourself."
During the trial, the older girl admitted to manslaughter, while the younger girl denied any involvement in the crime. The girls reportedly sobbed as they were led from the court following their convictions on April 5.
Local authorities in Hartlepool are now conducting an independent investigation to determine why the agencies charged with caring for the girls failed to recognize the danger they posed to the public.
Sources: Guardian, Daily Mail / Photo Credit: Cleveland Police/PA via Guardian, Daily Mail
