News / Crime

Woman to be sentenced for death of Hubert Brown

By Hannah Massoudi  Wednesday Jan 22, 2025

A woman has admitted killing Hubert “Isaac” Brown in Bristol in 2023.

Christina Howell, 37, of Easton, admitted manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility at a hearing at Bristol Crown Court on December 20.

This guilty plea to manslaughter came after Howell had entered a plea of not guilty to murder at an earlier hearing at Bristol Crown Court in November.

Independent journalism
is needed now More than ever
Keep our city's journalism independent.

It was formally accepted by the Crown Prosecution Service earlier this month.

Howell is due to be sentenced at a hearing on February 7 and remains in a secure hospital.

Hubert’s family have been kept informed by specially trained family liaison officers who continue to support them through the court process, along with the charity Stand Against Racism & Inequality (SARI).

Brown, 61, of Easton, died of a stab wound after being attacked on Grosvenor Road in St Paul’s at about 3.20pm on September 29 2023.

His death continues to be treated as a race-hate crime by the Major Crime Investigation Team.

Howell was detained at the scene by members of the public and was arrested at 3.30pm that day.

She appeared in court charged with murder on October 2 2023 and was remanded into custody.

Since then, she has been detained in a high-security hospital pending psychiatric reports on her fitness to stand trial.

Avon & Somerset Police detective inspector Nadine Partridge said: “This has been a devastating tragedy for Isaac’s family, with the unavoidable delays to the court case resulting from Howell’s mental ill health adding to their pain.

“I’m humbled by the dignity they have shown in their loss and, along with the investigation team, am grateful for their support throughout, even as they marked a second Christmas without him. Our thoughts are with them.”

Main photo: family

Read next:

Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
I want to receive (tick as many as you want):
I'm interested in (for future reference):
Marketing Permissions

Bristol24/7 will use the information you provide on this form to be in touch with you and to provide updates and marketing. Please let us know all the ways you would like to hear from us:

We will only use your information in accordance with our privacy policy, which can be viewed here - main-staging.bristol247.com/privacy-policy/ - you can change your mind at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in the footer of any email you receive from us, or by contacting us at meg@bristol247.com. We will treat your information with respect.


We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here.

Related articles

You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
Independent journalism
is needed now More than ever
You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
Join the Better
Business initiative
You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
* prices do not include VAT
You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
Enjoy delicious local
exclusive deals
You've read %d articles this month
Consider becoming a member today
Wake up to the latest
Get the breaking news, events and culture in your inbox every morning