Warning: This story contains the name and images of a deceased Indigenous person.

A man who chased an Indigenous teenager into bushland and violently murdered him with a metal pole has been sentenced to life behind bars.

Cassius Turvey, a Noongar Yamatji boy, died in hospital 10 days after he was deliberately struck to the head in Perth’s eastern suburbs on October 13, 2022.

Jack Steven James Brearley, 24, and Brodie Lee Palmer, 30, were convicted in May of murdering the 15-year-old after a 12-week trial.

They were each sentenced on Friday to life imprisonment, with Brearley eligible for parole in October 2044 and Palmer in January 2041.

Mitchell Colin Forth, 27, who was also on trial in the West Australian Supreme Court for Cassius’s murder and found guilty of manslaughter, was sentenced to 12 years, eligible for parole in January 2033.

Chief Justice Peter Quinlan said the killers had cut Cassius’s life short in a horrendous and vengeful act of aggression, violence and brutality.

“Cassius Turvey was robbed of his life and of his promise … all because you killed him, Mr Brearley,” he said.

Brearley had a complete lack of remorse and had lied throughout the trial while giving evidence, falsely accusing Cassius of knifing him and attempting to blame an innocent man for the killing, Justice Quinlan said.

“Mr Brearley, you were the person who killed Cassius Turvey in that fit of rage and brutality,” he said.

“While you did not intend to kill Cassius Turvey, your attack was persistent and sustained and only stopped by the arrival of Mr Palmer.”

Justice Quinlan said Palmer had failed to accept responsibility for his crimes and there were few mitigating factors to reduce his sentence.

“You do not have the benefit of a plea of guilty … and you do not have the benefit of good character,” he said.

Justice Quinlan said Forth was never the main offender in the shameful course of events but always there in the background.

“You were just following along in the excitement of trying to be a tough guy,” he said.

“And you followed Mr Brearley all the way to a conviction for manslaughter.”

Brearley delivered the fatal blows on Cassius while “hunting for kids” because somebody had smashed his car windows. 

He chased Cassius into bushland and knocked the teen to the ground and hit him in the head with a metal pole, causing bleeding in his brain that led to his death.

Palmer and Forth were at the scene and found to have a common purpose.

For 24/7 crisis support run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, contact 13YARN (13 92 76).

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