A former university worker was today jailed for at least 28 years after he tricked his female boss into a sharing a meal with him and murdered her when she rejected his romantic advances.
David Browning, 52, knifed Jillian Howell 15 times in the chest, neck and abdomen as she screamed ‘you b*****d’ in a struggle that ensued at her home in Brighton last October.
He had arrived at the 46-year-old payroll manager’s house with a curry, flowers and a bottle of wine that they ate together before he launched the horrific attack.
As she lay in a pool of blood on the lounge floor, Browning, who claimed Ms Howell had been unfair to him at work, scrawled ‘bully’ across her forehead in marker pen.
The 52-year-old wrote other messages on the walls of her home, including one that blamed the murder on Sean McDonald, a friend of Ms Howell’s and the Mayor of Worthing he believed was in a relationship with her.
The victim’s friends and family gasped and shouted ‘Yes’ yesterday as a jury rejected Browning’s claims of diminished responsibility and convicted him of murder.
David Browning, 52, pictured (left) after his arrest and (right) smiling as he leaves court earlier this month, has been found guilty of murdering his boss Jillian Howell, 46
After scrawling the world ‘bully’ on her head in marker pen, Browning also left messages on the wall of Ms Howell’s (pictured) Brighton home, including one blaming her friend Sean McDonald (pictured) for the crime
Jillian Howell (pictured) had tried to help Browning after he suffered depression when his father died
Graham Trembath, defending, said the killing was ‘inexcusable’ and had ruined the lives of many people, not least his own family.
‘It is a fact that he was diagnosed as suffering from a depressive condition. It was clearly triggered by his father’s tragic death. It does not excuse what he did.’
Judge Christine Laing QC said: ‘Jillian Howell as a much loved sister, cousin, niece and friend. She was 46 years old when she was murdered by you in a savage attack, sustaining 15 stab wounds.
‘In the final moments of her life she desperately tried to defend herself. The terror and trauma in her final few moments is unimaginable.’
‘She said he had then defiled her body by scrawling ‘Bully’ on her forehead as she lay dead when it is clear that ‘nothing was further from the truth.’
‘She was a compassionate woman, a quality that cost her her life. She took time to listen to you and find ways to help you.
‘You developed a crush on her that developed into a obsession. What led to you kill her was a very human cocktail of emotions: desire, jealousy, frustration and anger.
‘As a result of your callous action many people have been affected. The impact on her family and friends is devastating.
‘I take into account that you have been diagnosed as suffering from depression following the death of your father. I accept it played some part in these events no doubt causing you to become obsessed.’
Browning drew up a plan to kill his boss at the payroll department at the University of Brighton, buying a 10cm lock knife and shotgun with which he intended to kill himself.
An uneaten meal of curry and wine was found at the house where Ms Howell was killed
Browning (right) attacked Ms Howell (left), who he had accused of bullying him
Browning used this knife to stab Ms Howell 15 times in the chest, neck and abdomen
He also posted a series of suicide letters claiming he could no longer put up with the intense workplace bullying.
He arrived at her home on the evening of October 25 with flowers and a bottle of wine and the meal the pair chatted.
The court heard that around 10.30pm she told Browning he ought to think about leaving and going home.
He told the court: ‘I said: ‘I can’t go home.’, She said: ‘Why?’, I said: ‘Because I’ve posted my suicide notes’.’
He said Miss Howell told him she was going to take him to hospital and went to get her trainers and jacket and as she bent to tie her shoelaces he stabbed her.
Browning said: ‘I was behind her. I felt this whoosh feeling come over. I pulled the knife out and stabbed her in the back.
‘She fell towards the sofa and as I stabbed her in the throat once she grabbed knife with her hand and screamed: ‘You b*****d’. I said: ‘Sorry Jill this is what mental health does to you’.’
Afterwards he daubed other messages around the house in spray paint in which he blamed Sean McDonald – the former mayor of Worthing – who he mistakenly believed was in a relationship with Miss Howell.
Police footage shows the moment Browning walked into a police station and confessed
Ms Howell, 46, was Browning’s boss at the payroll department, having been employed in 2015 to improve an unproductive department.
She told friends she was frustrated by Browning, who had worked there since 1989, and another male colleague who were resistant to changes she wished to bring in.
Staff said Miss Howell had picked on Browning, shouted at him and ‘belittled’ him in front of colleagues.
But she had also offered to help him because he was suffering from stress and anxiety following the death of his father.
His plea for help is understood to have been especially poignant to the Samaritans volunteer, who herself suffered depression in the wake of her own father’s death just a few years before.
Elaine Rowe, one of seven employees in the payroll unit, said if Browning and Miss Howell disagreed there could be fireworks.
She said: ‘If they did not agree she would not take that very well and shout, intimidate or be very rude. It was in front of the whole finance office. It happened quite often, every week, every other week.’
But Miss Howell was also mindful Browning was suffering from depression and she felt if she offered help and understanding it might ease work tensions.
In June she invited him out for drinks after work and the pair went to the Signalman pub in Ditchling Rise in Brighton.
Police found a note Browning had written wrongly implicating another man in the murder
Browning posted this picture, showing a ‘bully’ being stabbed, after he carried out the attack
Browning was grateful for the support and texted her after saying: ‘I adore you personally and professionally. I am there for you anytime Dave x.’
But over the coming weeks his condition worsened and he confessed to having suicidal thoughts.
Killer bought gun despite mental health problems
Despite suffering severe anxiety, depression and having suicidal thoughts, David Browning found it easy to get a firearms licence and buy a lethal 12-gauge shotgun and cartridges.
Under law, police interview any applicant for a firearms licence and also check criminal records and medical history before making a decision on whether to issue one.
Browning was asked whether he was suffering suicidal thoughts, stress, depression, anxiety, dementia or any other type of mental illness to which he replied: ‘No.’
He then provided police with his GP details so officers could contact them to double check whether they had any concerns.
Browning was granted a five year firearms licence on July 30 which would have expired in 2022.
Shortly afterwards he bought a 12-gauge shotgun, 50 shotgun cartridges and a lock knife later used in the murder, paying around £1,000 in cash.
Despite being referred to the University of Brighton’s occupational health team in September it seems no alert or warning was issued to the authorities.
Concerned, Miss Howell told friends she was going to invite him round to her house for a meal to ‘cheer him up.’
Claire Taylor, a close friend, was concerned by this step and felt she might be overstepping her professional role as his boss.
The invitation went ahead and Browning took wine and flowers and Miss Howell cooked and the pair shared a chicken curry and wine and chatted afterwards.
The following day, Browning, who was married with two children, texting: ‘Thank you for tonight. Can I just say now we’re not full of red wine. I think you realise what you mean to me as a person and a friend. I will continue to be inappropriate at times to make you smile.’
It is clear Miss Howell’s attempts to lend a helping hand to her deputy to help him through his depression were almost immediately misconstrued by Browning.
Ms Howell realised too late that Browning had become hopelessly and dangerously attached to her.
On one occasion Browning, told her: ‘You must never leave the university or get a boyfriend because I need you.’
The court heard Browning began to suspect Miss Howell was in a relationship with another man, Sean McDonald – the former mayor of Worthing – when in fact the pair were just close friends.
Attempting to put some distance between them, Miss Howell recommended he see a counsellor from the university’s occupational health team which he eventually agreed to.
But after the counselling session he felt worse telling his boss: ‘The problem is I’m not okay. I feel doomed.’
Browning told counsellor Jane Faulkner he had suicidal thoughts and wanted to die, but at no stage did the university inform the police or his GP about his deteriorating mental health.
In the run-up to the killing Browning came up with a plan to implicate Sean McDonald in the killing.
Browning was said to be resisting changes his boss wanted to make in the payroll department at the University of Brighton
In an elaborate ruse he submitted a form to the university pension department requesting a change of beneficiary on Jill Howell’s pension to make Sean McDonald the sole benefactor.
However the pensions department became suspicious because the signature did not resemble Miss Howell’s signature.
His last appointment with the counsellor was on October 24 – the day before he killed Ms Howell.
On October 25 Browning again went round to Miss Howell’s house in Fiveways, Brighton bearing wine and flowers – only this time he arrived with a 10cm lock knife with which he intended to kill her.
Victim’s family say they are struggling to deal with ‘shocking and incomprehensible’ murder
The family of Jillian Howell have said her death was ‘incomprehensible’ and they may never come to terms with it
The family of Jillian Howell have said her death was ‘incomprehensible’ and they may never come to terms with it.
After learning David Browning had been found guilty, a crowd of relatives gathered on the steps outside Hove Crown Court on Wednesday while one of Ms Howell’s nephews read a statement which said: ‘The last six months have been truly awful.
‘Jill’s death was shocking and incomprehensible, and we are still struggling to accept and make sense of it.
‘We are pleased that this process is now over but it doesn’t change anything for us, it doesn’t bring Jill back and we miss her so much.
‘The deep sadness and emptiness we feel will be with us for the rest of our lives.’
The statement paid tribute to ‘beautiful, gentle and kind Jill’ who they said they will carry in their hearts forever and remember as a loving and caring sister, the ‘best auntie in the history of the world ever’ and someone who had ‘tremendous honesty and integrity’.
The authorities who investigated and prosecuted the case and friends who supported them helped to restore their ‘faith in humanity’, they added.
Professor Debra Humphris, vice-chancellor of the University of Brighton, said the entire university was ‘shocked and saddened’ by Ms Howell’s death, adding: ‘Jill was a much loved, compassionate and highly respected colleague and she is greatly missed.
‘Her death and the circumstances surrounding it have made this an extremely difficult time for colleagues who worked closely with both Jill and David Browning, and the university is continuing to provide support for all those affected.’
Former detective says the man who tried to kill him for murdering his best friend is ‘evil’
A former detective has voiced his anger at an ‘evil’ killer who tried to frame him for his best friend’s murder.
Sean McDonald said he had never met or even heard of David Browning until a police officer knocked on his door on October 26, last year.
Not only did he have devastating news – that his soulmate Jillian Howell had been stabbed to death in her home – but also that clues at the crime scene indicated he had been involved.
Jillian Howell’s killer tried to frame her close friend Sean McDonald (left) for her killing
Mr McDonald, a serving Sussex Police officer for 30 years, learned graffiti had been sprayed on the walls of her house which blamed him for her death and a letter left there indicated he had been complicit in the crime.
Browning had stored his number in his phone just days before, and found his home address – but never contacted him.
Documents had also been forged on the morning of the murder to try to change the sole beneficiary of Ms Howell’s pension fund to be Mr McDonald – to support the claim in the letter that the pair were planning to split the proceeds after her death.
Mr McDonald’s emails and phone records were searched to rule out any trace to Browning, who later admitted being behind all of this because he wanted to set up the serving councillor and former mayor to be the ‘scapegoat’.
Mr McDonald said he’d never heard of Browning until police contacted him after Jillian’s death
He had even asked a friend to send a ‘vitriolic’ letter to Mr McDonald two months after the murder to try to further implicate him in the killing, the court heard.
Speaking to Press Association, the 60-year-old, of Durrington in West Sussex, said: ‘Throughout his evidence, he had to step back on claims he had made, about me, about Jill.
‘In the end, he confirmed that we had never spoken or met and I was not in the least involved.
‘He also painted Jill to be this demon and a bully at work. But no-one has a bad word to say about her. In the end he had to admit that he wrote ‘bully’ on her forehead but she wasn’t one.’
He added: ‘She was not like that, she was an absolutely lovely person, and I was not in anyway involved.
‘He didn’t seem to be able to give a reason for killing her, but the prosecution thought he was jealous of my relationship with her and I think this too from what I’ve heard in the trial and from what other people have told me. He is just evil.’
Mr McDonald denied Browning’s claims that Ms Howell had bullied him at work
Mr McDonald told how he ‘completely broke down’ when he had to give evidence and has struggled to come to terms with her death, adding: ‘I’m generally quite robust but I think in that situation anyone would be affected by it, it was a natural reaction to what I was having to talk about.’
He said he and Ms Howell was ‘best friends’ and ‘companions’, but he insisted their relationship was never intimate, adding: ‘This is where Browning got it very wrong. There was never anything sexual.’