While this is not an exhaustive list, here are some of the cases that shocked our readers in 2021.
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5. Harley Lishman
A controlling rapist who attacked two vulnerable Preston schoolgirls was detained for 12 years in a young offenders’ institution, with an extended licence of two years, in July. Harley Lishman, 20 of no fixed abode, was ruled to be a dangerous offender by Judge Philip Parry, who said he posed a risk to other girls.
6. From left, Jamie Dixon, Lemar Forbes and Asad Hussain
A man and two teenagers were identified and jailed in September for their roles in the stabbing and murder of 16-year-old Sarmad Rami Al-Saidi in Preston. Jamie Dixon, 19, was told he will have to serve a minimum of 19 years and his co-defendant 17-year-old Lemar Anthony Forbes was told he will have to spend at least 15 years behind bars. Asad Hussain, 17, was sentenced to five years in custody for conspiring to commit the serious assault which led to Sarmad’s death.
7. Malik Khalid Hussain
Malik Khalid Hussain, 18, of no fixed abode, was given 12 months in a young offender's institution in September after admitting wounding Jamie Smith on March 21 at a house in Eaves Lane, Chorley.
8. Daniel Butler and Marina Westlund
Two people were sentenced in September following the death of a Preston man who was fatally injured in a "sustained and unprovoked" attack in Blackburn. Nigel Scott was found with serious head injuries on December 27, 2020. Daniel Butler, 33, fatally injured Mr Scott in the assault and was sentenced to 11 years in prison while Marina Westlund, 26, admitted manslaughter on the basis that while she encouraged Butler to assault Mr Scott, she did not take part in any physical attack upon him. She was sentenced to 45 months in jail.