One of two teenagers convicted of murdering 16-year-old Brianna Ghey had the length of his sentence reduced as the judge ignored his “immaturity”, an appeals court heard.
Eddie Ratcliffe received a minimum term of 20 years in February for murder, along with Scarlett Jenkinson, who received a minimum term of 22 years.
Brianna was stabbed 28 times with a hunting knife during an “exceptionally brutal” attack in Linear Park, Culcheth, near Warrington, in February last year.
Ratcliffe, who was 15 at the time of the killing and is now 17, was found transphobic about his victim. He is now seeking leave to appeal against his sentence.
At a hearing on Thursday, a lawyer for Ratcliffe, who has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and selective mutism, said the judge “sufficiently” omitted the age and maturity factor in his sentencing. The Crown Prosecution Service opposes the appeal bid.
Speaking at the London court, Richard Littler KC, for Ratcliffe, said: “Guilt and maturity are at the heart of this application.”
“It’s fair to say that in any analysis the maturity of the claimant is closer to the beginning of the 14-year-old than the 17-year-old,” he said. “The point we are making is that age and maturity are the most important issues in this case, and they could very well affect the outcome of this particular applicant.”
Little Ratcliffe said she was found to have “poor social skills” and “immaturity” and a “lower-than-expected ability to express what she thinks or express her ideas”, adding that the sentence was “far too high”.
He said: “They have not been held in doubt, but they have not entered fully.”
Ratcliffe attended the hearing via video link with his mother present in the courtroom. The court was told that Brianna’s family was even further away.
A previous trial at Manchester Crown Court heard that Brianna had thousands of followers on TikTok, but was in reality a withdrawn, shy and anxious teenager who struggled with depression and rarely left the house.
Jurors said the two killers were intelligent, “high-functioning” and came from normal backgrounds, but had a fascination with violence, torture and murder and a “thirst to kill”.
Jenkinson, who lived nearby in Culcheth Gardens, had been asked to leave his school, Culcheth High, to give cannabis-infused amber sweets to another pupil, and had joined Brianna’s school, Birchwood High, in October 2022.
She quickly became “obsessed” with Brianna, and together with Ratcliffe put together a “kill list” with four other young people they wanted to harm until Brianna had an “accident” from Jenkinson’s friend.
The pair’s murders have been discussed for weeks, explained in Jenkinson’s handwritten murder plan and phone messages found by detectives. Jenkinson also told Ratcliffe that he wanted to stab Brianna “just coz it’s fun lol…” I want to see the pure horror in her face and hear her scream.
Brianna was lured to Linear Park on February 11 last year where she was attacked with a Ratcliffe hunting knife, which had a 13cm blade. She was stabbed in the head, neck, chest and back, with Jenkinson deleting a Snapchat conversation between them and finding the cover story.
Both teenagers were arrested an hour later, with the murder weapon and bloody clothing found in Ratcliffe’s bedroom.
The hearing before Chief Justice Baroness Carr, Mr Justice Murray and Lord Justice Lavender will conclude later on Thursday.