UK - Alesha MacPhail, 6, raped & murdered, Ardbeg, Isle of Bute, Scotland, 2 Jul 2018 -*arrest* #6

[Kiranerys]

Thank you, we are all very proud of him and what he has acheived.
It was a fight when he was 16 where the other young boy ended up fighting for his life. He plead guilty immediately never denied anything but it's a prime example of how young teenagers don't think of the consequences of their actions until it's too late.

He sounds like a remarkable young man,it's always good to hear a success story

 

[TaylorCallum]

Very difficult. I think it does go the opposite way in alot of situations. I think people can be written off too quickly which is a shame. The thing with my cousin was he accepted responsibility immediately for his crime, he knew he had gone too far and that's what stood him in good stead.

Yes, definitely. I think the socioeconomic background of the offender also needs to be taken into consideration too. Not that a lack of money or a certain environment is necessarily an excuse for a violent crime but sometimes it's more understandable to see where the anger comes from or how it lead to that point. Absolutely, I think that's very important too, to accept responsibility. Which is great that your cousin did that. It's the first step in being able to acknowledge the problem at hand and how you're going to overcome it and learn from your mistakes. Denial doesn't seem to help anyone. Which is pretty obvious in this case with Aaron.

 

[Kikixxxx]

The nature of the crime means I doubt AC will ever admit it though, imagine the shame of admitting you raped and strangled a defenceless little girl? Even he must feel immense shame to admit that, He wouldn’t have the balls, it’s easier for him to deny it and make out it’s a miscarriage of justice even though everyone knows he done it including his own mother.
I’d be very shocked if he does ever come clean but hopefully I am wrong.

 

[Yenriac]

He sounds like a remarkable young man,it's always good to hear a success story

Thank you. He is.

 

[Yenriac]

The nature of the crime means I doubt AC will ever admit it though, imagine the shame of admitting you raped and strangled a defenceless little girl? Even he must feel immense shame to admit that, He wouldn’t have the balls, it’s easier for him to deny it and make out it’s a miscarriage of justice even though everyone knows he done it including his own mother.
I’d be very shocked if he does ever come clean but hopefully I am wrong.

I don't think he ever will. I also don't think he feels any shame.

 

[Yenriac]

Yes, definitely. I think the socioeconomic background of the offender also needs to be taken into consideration too. Not that a lack of money or a certain environment is necessarily an excuse for a violent crime but sometimes it's more understandable to see where the anger comes from or how it lead to that point. Absolutely, I think that's very important too, to accept responsibility. Which is great that your cousin did that. It's the first step in being able to acknowledge the problem at hand and how you're going to overcome it and learn from your mistakes. Denial doesn't seem to help anyone. Which is pretty obvious in this case with Aaron.

Agreed. Socioeconomics plays a big part unfortunately.

 

[TaylorCallum]

The nature of the crime means I doubt AC will ever admit it though, imagine the shame of admitting you raped and strangled a defenceless little girl? Even he must feel immense shame to admit that, He wouldn’t have the balls, it’s easier for him to deny it and make out it’s a miscarriage of justice even though everyone knows he done it including his own mother.
I’d be very shocked if he does ever come clean but hopefully I am wrong.

I agree. I would like to be wrong as well. I hope he does admit it but I think he might not. But then I guess it depends on whether or not someone believes he is capable of feeling shame or not? I've said before I don't think he is a sociopath nor am I convinced yet that he is a psychopath, although I could be mistaken. He definitely has some mental disorder (or multiple), not sure which yet, and I do believe he probably is capable of feeling guilt, shame, etc. but some people might think that he is not. I'm sure some people think he does not feel any real human emotion and I can understand why they might think that, so, in that case, he might not hide it because of shame.

 

[Yenriac]

I agree. I would like to be wrong as well. I hope he does admit it but I think he might not. But then I guess it depends on whether or not someone believes he is capable of feeling shame or not? I've said before I don't think he is a sociopath nor am I convinced yet that he is a psychopath, although I could be mistaken. He definitely has some mental disorder (or multiple), not sure which yet, and I do believe he probably is capable of feeling guilt, shame, etc. but some people might think that he is not. I'm sure some people think he does not feel any real human emotion and I can understand why they might think that, so, in that case, he might not hide it because of shame.

If he was going to admit his guilt he would have done so pre trial IMO

 

[Rhenish]

I agree with above post, also admitting his guilt and taking responsibility for and feigning remorse would have bee a much better tactic.

 

[TaylorCallum]

If he was going to admit his guilt he would have done so pre trial IMO

I do think this as well. The only thing that I'm considering though is that I think he thought he might have been able to get away with it, but now that the realisation is setting in (especially after sentencing) that he will be behind bars for a very long time, he might decide to open up a bit with access to psychologists and therapists. It seems unlikely but when he's stuck in prison for years - and inside his own head - maybe he'll finally think that it is time to admit what he's done and try and move on from it but probably not going to happen.

 

[Yenriac]

I agree with above post, also admitting his guilt and taking responsibility for and feigning remorse would have bee a much better tactic.

Definitely, yes he would be facing a lengthy sentence but his admission would have been taken into account at sentencing.
The judge will most likely mention his not guilty plea during the sentencing statement.

 

[Yenriac]

I do think this as well. The only thing that I'm considering though is that I think he thought he might have been able to get away with it, but now that the realisation is setting in (especially after sentencing) that he will be behind bars for a very long time, he might decide to open up a bit with access to psychologists and therapists. It seems unlikely but when he's stuck in prison for years - and inside his own head - maybe he'll finally think that it is time to admit what he's done and try and move on from it but probably not going to happen.

Yes it's a possibility. At the moment he's a 16 year old boy, who knows what he'll be like as a 30 year old man. I know I'm different now than i was at 16, 18 and 21.

 

[TaylorCallum]

Yes it's a possibility. At the moment he's a 16 year old boy, who knows what he'll be like as a 30 year old man. I know I'm different now than i was at 16, 18 and 21.

True. The thing I'm worried about though, is if he continuously denies what he has done. If he lets all of those feelings and memories fester without getting treatment and acknowledging the severe issues he has, then what if he does get out at ~40 and he kills again. I hope that is not the case but it would be horrifying if it did happen. I don't suspect it will, but can you imagine?

 

[Kikixxxx]

True. The thing I'm worried about though, is if he continuously denies what he has done. If he lets all of those feelings and memories fester without getting treatment and acknowledging the severe issues he has, then what if he does get out at ~40 and he kills again. I hope that is not the case but it would be horrifying if it did happen. I don't suspect it will, but can you imagine?

I honestly feel like there should be no parole for people who don’t admit there crimes when it’s clear as day they are responsible. It’s a kick in the teeth to the families of the victim, I know realistically it can never happen - coz what if they are actually innocent they can’t admit it etc. But in certain cases like these, where the evidence was so strong all that was missing was quite literally a hd live stream of him actually doing it - there should be some kind of law where there’s no possibility of parole without an admission of guilt.

 

[Yenriac]

Thank you, we are all very proud of him and what he has acheived.
It was a fight when he was 16 where the other young boy ended up fighting for his life. He plead guilty immediately never denied anything but it's a prime example of how young teenagers don't think of the consequences of their actions until it's too late.

Just to clarify, in no way can this boy or his crime be compared to AC or his horrendous crime. My relative is not evil.

 

[Edinlass]

Just to clarify, in no way can this boy or his crime be compared to AC or his horrendous crime. My relative is not evil.

Exactly and I don’t think it’s unreasonable that we wish harm to AC for what he’s done.

 

[TaylorCallum]

Exactly and I don’t think it’s unreasonable that we wish harm to AC for what he’s done.

I agree with you here, just to clarify one of my previous points. I don't think it's unreasonable either for someone to wish ill of him. For example, if one of Alesha's family were to have attacked him in court I would have fully understood and I would have said they didn't deserve to be harshly punished for it. It makes sense to want justice to be served against someone who has committed such an atrocious act. I was just meaning that within the prison it does the other inmates no favours to attack someone like Aaron because it just adds longer onto their own sentence and hampers their rehabilitation process, plus it portrays the prison service in a somewhat negative light for failing to ensure the safety of someone in their care (even if that person is a despised individual, the duty of protection is supposed to be with the prison service).

 

[Kiranerys]

I don't think he ever will. I also don't think he feels any shame.

I agree,I would be more inclined to suggest he feels a sense of pride from his behaviour at trial to be honest

 

[Kiranerys]

Just to clarify, in no way can this boy or his crime be compared to AC or his horrendous crime. My relative is not evil.

Absolutely not! Your relatives case sounds like a young man who made a mistake in the moment,realised and owned it straight away and has clearly learned and used the experience to make himself a better person living a good life....not even in the same universe as AC!

 

[Eve71]

I don't think he ever will. I also don't think he feels any shame.

Agree. His attitude in court showed someone devoid of normal emotions That may change over the years, with the right therapists involved but I believe,judging by the brutality of his crime and behaviour since, he will always remain a very dangerous individual.