Killer youths lose jailing appeal

All four defendants were convicted of manslaughter

Appeal court judges have refused to cut a 12-year sentence given to three youths who killed a man during a night of random violence.

David Morley was kicked to death on London's South Bank in October 2004.

Reece Sargeant, 21, Darren Case, 18, and David Blenman, 17, were convicted of manslaughter last December.

Chelsea O'Mahoney, 16, who was also convicted of manslaughter, had previously failed to get her eight-year sentence reduced.

The judges warned those convicted of such crimes could expect "no mercy" from the courts.

Gratuitous violence

Lord Justice Gage and two other judges said acts of "gratuitous violence" carried out at random on innocent victims for the sole purpose of enjoyment from humiliation and pleasure from the infliction of pain "cannot be tolerated".

O'Mahoney who was also convicted of manslaughter, had previously failed in a bid to challenge her eight-year custodial sentence.

During the trial, the court heard the gang had hunted London's streets for victims who they would film on their mobile phones.

Mr Morley, 38, of Chiswick, west London, who was a survivor of the nail bombing of the Admiral Duncan public house in Soho's Old Compton Street in April 1999, never recovered consciousness after being subjected to a sudden and frenzied attack.

Bar manager Mr Morley had survived the Soho nail bombing

Mr Morley and his friend, Alastair Whiteside, had been chatting beside the River Thames when they were both attacked.

Within one hour the gang had set upon eight people in what was described as an "orgy" of five separate attacks.

All took place along the South Bank theatre complex of the River Thames, around Waterloo and Hungerford Bridge.

The four, who are all from Kennington, south London, were told by the trial judge that they would each have to serve at least two-thirds of their sentences before being released on licence for the remainder of their terms.

Lord Justice Gage said the killing "comes very close to the top of the scale in the range of seriousness" for offences of manslaughter.