Steven Miles: The killer teen inspired by Dexter
Laura Whitmore on Britain's Killer TeensMurder cases always have an element of shock to them, but there is something particularly disturbing about young people who choose to commit murder. Laura Whitmore is diving deeper into this phenomenon with the youth in Britain with the series Britain’s Killer Teens.
One of the cases Laura will be looking at is that of Steven Miles. In 2014, then 16-year-old Steven murdered his girlfriend and gruesomely dismembered her. But why did he do it? Join us here at Crime+Investigation as we examine the case of Steven Miles, one of Britain's Killer Teens.
Who is Steven Miles?
In 2014, Steven Miles was 16 years old. He wasn’t living a normal teenage life, as he had several mental health issues that concerned his parents. In April 2012, his parents made the decision to refer him to his GP due to self harming. He was then referred on to mental health services.
There were signs that Miles was on the autism spectrum, but also concerns that he was displaying traits of a narcissistic personality. Issues were also raised by one of Miles’s ex-girlfriends, who had spoken to the police about him beforehand. She was adamant that he was going to kill someone eventually. She also spoke of one occasion where he strangled her.
Despite the worrying signs, Miles was said to have been making good progress with his mental health by October 2013. He had been receiving support and had missed a fair amount of school, but things appeared to be looking up. Around that time, Miles was discharged by the mental health team.
The murder of Elizabeth Thomas
In January 2014 – less than a year after he had been discharged – Miles invited his girlfriend, 17 year old Elizabeth Thomas, to his home while his family were not there. When she entered his bedroom, Miles stabbed her several times in the back and the head.
Once she was dead, he dismembered her, severing one of her arms and her legs. He was able to do so by using tools – including a saw – from his dad's tree surgery business. Miles then wrapped Elizabeth’s body parts in clingfilm before placing them in bin bags.
An hour later, Miles’s sister came back to the family's flat. When she returned, her brother told her that 'Ed' had made him do something bad. 'Ed' was an alter ego Miles claimed to have, telling his family that it was this voice in his head that made him kill Elizabeth. Miles was arrested at the scene.
The sentence hearing
Steven Miles’s pleaded guilty to Elizabeth’s murder at sentence hearing in October 2014 at Guildford Crown Court. During the hearing, the motives behind the killing came to light.
Miles was obsessed with the television show, Dexter, an American crime drama. The show resolves around a man named Dexter Morgan, a vigilante serial killer by night and a forensic blood splatter analyst by day. Miles wanted to emulate Dexter’s killings, and Elizabeth was the unfortunate test subject.
Miles’s defendant – Lewis Power QC – spoke of how deeply entrenched Miles was in the Dexter series, and the results of this obsession.
‘This was a truly gruesome killing ripped from the pages of a hit TV script. The evidence points to the defendant trying to emulate the actions of the character Dexter who he idolised.’
‘The case is a sad testament to the perils of how young people can become entrenched in modern TV blockbusters involving violence, which shockingly led to a copycat killing in real life.’
The judge at Miles’s hearing – Christopher Critchlow – spoke candidly of the disturbing nature of the crime when sentencing him;
‘This is a case of the utmost gravity, the horrific features of which are rarely heard in any court. Nothing this court can say or do, no sentence this court can impose, can alleviate the pain suffered by Elizabeth Thomas’ family for death in such a terrible manner. There must be a life sentence.’
Miles was given that life sentence at the hearing, with a minimum of 25 years to be served. Elizabeth – described by those who knew her as kind, pretty, gentle and caring – should have had the chance to grow up, but her life was brutally taken by one of Britain’s worst killer teenagers.
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