Brianna Ghey’s mother calls for empathy as judge rules teenage killers can be named – live
Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times in a park near Warrington in February
Brianna Ghey’s mother has called for empathy and compassion for the parents of her daughter’s killers as a judge has ruled the two teenage murderers can be named.
Esther Ghey called for “empathy and compassion” for the pair’s families as “they too have lost a child” and “must live the rest of their lives knowing what their child has done”.
Trial judge Mrs Justice Yip praised Ms Ghey for her “fortitude and humanity” at Manchester Crown Court on Thursday.
During the hearing, the judge also said the young killers can be identified by the media when they are sentenced on 2 February, lifting the anonymity orders previously protecting the defendants’ identities due to their age.
Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times in her head, neck, chest and back in Linear Park, Culcheth, a village near Warrington, Cheshire, on the afternoon of 11 February.
Following a four-week trial, the two teenagers accused, currently only identified as girl X and boy Y, both now aged 16 but 15 at the time, were convicted of murder on Wednesday and are now facing mandatory jail terms for life.
How torture-obsessed teens plotted Brianna Ghey’s murder
Ateenage girl with a fascination for serial killers watched her favourite film Sweeney Todd as she and a teenage boy put the finishing touches to a meticulous plan for a brutal murder.
The following day, the girl lured transgender teenager Brianna Ghey to a park in Culcheth, near Warrington, having already tried and failed to kill the 16-year-old with an overdose of ibuprofen. In a frenzied attack, the young killers stabbed Brianna 28 times with a hunting knife, the first victim from their “kill list” of at least five child targets.
Now convicted of Brianna’s murder following a four-week trial at Manchester Crown Court, the pair are facing mandatory jail terms for life.
Read more here:
How a serial killer-obsessed teenage girl plotted Brianna Ghey’s brutal murder
Girl who called herself a Satanist began to fantasise about killing people from as young as age 14, Tara Cobham writes
Why Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers could be named
A judge will decide whether to lift anonymity orders protecting the identities of Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers, and allow the media to publish their names, at a hearing today (21 December).
Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times after being lured to Linear Park in Cheshire, on the afternoon of 11 February.
Her killers, identified only as girl X and boy Y – both now aged 16 but 15 at the time, had denied murder and each blamed the other for the killing of the transgender teenager.
Barrister Kirsty Brimelow KC appeared on Good Morning Britain on Thursday to explain why the teenage killers could now be named.
Lucy Leeson reports:
Why Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers could be named
A judge will decide whether to lift anonymity orders protecting the identities of Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers, and allow the media to publish their names, at a hearing today (21 December). Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times after being lured to Linear Park in Cheshire, on the afternoon of 11 February. Her killers, identified only as girl X and boy Y – both now aged 16 but 15 at the time, had denied murder and each blamed the other for the killing of the transgender teenager. Barrister Kirsty Brimelow KC appeared on Good Morning Britain on Thursday to explain why the teenage killers could now be named.
Judge to decide if media can publish names of Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers
A judge will decide whether to lift anonymity orders protecting the identities of Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers, and allow the media to publish their names, at a hearing on Thursday.
Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times in her head, neck, chest and back after being lured to Linear Park, Culcheth, a village near Warrington, Cheshire, on the afternoon of February 11.
Her killers, identified only as girl X and boy Y – both now aged 16 but 15 at the time, had denied murder and each blamed the other for the killing of the transgender teenager, described as “horrific” by detectives.
Ellie Ng reports:
Judge to decide if media can publish names of Brianna Ghey’s teenage killers
Two teenagers, identified only as girl X and boy Y, were convicted on Wednesday of murdering Brianna.
Full report: Teenagers found guilty of Brianna Ghey’s murder
Two teenagers have been found guilty of murdering schoolgirl Brianna Ghey in a frenzied killing planned weeks in advance.
Brianna, 16, was stabbed 28 times with a hunting knife by the two callous teens, who she believed to be her friends but who had been planning the horrifying attack in meticulous detail behind her back.
The pair, a boy and a girl both now aged 16, who both attempted to blame each other, were described as warped and obsessed with murder by detectives during a harrowing four-week trial at Manchester Crown Court.
My colleague Tara Cobham has the full report:
Brianna Ghey trial verdict: Teenagers found guilty of murder
Brianna, 16, was stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times in a park near Warrington in February
Chilling doorbell footage shows Brianna Ghey leaving home hours before she was stabbed to death
Brianna Ghey’s parents deliver statements after two teenagers found guilty of 16-year-old’s murder
The parents of Brianna Ghey made emotional statements after two teenagers, known only as girl X and boy Y, were found guilty of the 16-year-old’s murder, at Manchester Crown Court:
Brianna Ghey’s parents deliver statements after two teenagers found guilty of murder
The parents of Brianna Ghey made emotional statements after two teenagers, known only as girl X and boy Y, were found guilty of the 16-year-old’s murder, at Manchester Crown Court on Wednesday 20 December. “Brianna was larger than life. She was funny, witty, and fearless. We miss Brianna so much, and our house feels so empty without her,” Esther Ghey said. Mrs Ghey said she originally felt sympathy for the defendants before the trial until they had shown not “an ounce of remorse.” “I look into her eyes and they shine back at me. And I know she was a beautiful girl to be proud of. I hate how her life has been brutally taken away from her, and she’s been deprived of the life she wanted to live,” Brianna’s father, Peter Spooner, said.
Killer’s phone number saved in phone as ‘Tesco John Wick’, court heard
The jury heard girl X had saved boy Y’s phone number in her phone under the name “Tesco John Wick” and that John Wick was a character from a film about a violent hitman played by Keanu Reeves.
Killer said she was ‘obsessed’ with Brianna Ghey
The court heard that teenager X told Y over WhatsApp that she was “obsessed” with Brianna, and police would find a crumpled handwritten plan to kill her on X’s bedroom floor.
Searching X’s home after her arrest, officers found the note headed “Saturday, 11th February, 2023. Victim: Brianna Ghey,” with the word “plan” written underneath and a smiley face and a heart shape drawn on the top right-hand corner.
The note read: “Meet [boy Y] at wooden posts 1pm. Walk down to library, bus stop. Wait until Brianna gets off bus, then the 3 of us walk to Linear Park. Go to the pipe/tunnel area. I say code word to [boy Y]. He stabs her in the back as I stab her in stomach. [Boy Y] drags the body into the area. We both cover up the area with logs etc.”
Brianna Ghey’s killer sent picture of murder weapon on New Year’s Day
The girl convicted of Brianna Ghey’s murder said she had a knife like the one used by the murderous barber Sweeney Todd, a character she appeared to idolise after having seen the film of the same name “9,000 times”.
The court heard that the teenage boy convicted of her murder sent an image of the weapon used to murder Brianna on New Year’s Day.
The £13.50 wooden-handled hunting knife was found in his bedroom with Brianna’s blood on it and his DNA on the handle. His internet browsing history from the end of last year also showed searches on various poisons, including VX nerve agents, sarin and tabun.
Boy accused of murdering Brianna Ghey claimed to be ‘admiring trees’ during stabbing
The teenage boy accused of murdering transgender teenager Brianna Ghey claimed he was “admiring trees” at the time of her stabbing – as he blamed his co-defendant for the teenager’s death.
Boy Y told the trial his hunting knife had been used to stab Brianna but claimed girl X, his 16-year-old co-defendant, who also can’t be named because of her age, was the one who carried out the fatal attack.
My colleague Matt Mathers reports:
Boy accused of murdering Brianna Ghey was ‘admiring trees’ during stabbing
The teenager was stabbed 28 times with a hunting knife in an attack in a park near Warrington earlier this year
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