Brianna Ghey’s killer Eddie Ratcliffe, 17, needs his 20-year jail sentence decreased as a result of he has the ‘maturity of a 14-year-old’
One of Brianna Ghey‘s killers has appealed to have his 20-year prison sentence reduced because he has the ‘maturity of a 14-year-old boy’.
Eddie Ratcliffe, now 17, was detained for life in February this year for the murder of the 16-year-old, along with co-defendant Scarlett Jenkinson, who received a minimum term of 22 years.
Brianna was stabbed 28 times with a hunting knife during the fatal attack in Linear Park, Culcheth, near Warrington, in February last year, which the sentencing judge, Mrs Justice Yip, described as ‘exceptionally brutal’.
Ratcliffe, who was 15 at the time of the murder, was also found to have been transphobic about his victim.
But lawyers for Ratcliffe, who has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and selective mutism, have now lodged an appeal to have the length of his sentence reduced.
At a hearing at The Court of Appeal on Thursday, they said the judge failed to ‘sufficiently’ take into account his age and maturity when deciding his sentence.
The Crown Prosecution Service is opposing the appeal bid.
The hearing, which is currently taking place, has been attended by remotely Brianna’s family, while Ratcliffe is attending via a video link, dressed in a dark suit, shirt and tie, with his mother present in court.
Brianna Grey was stabbed 28 times with a hunting knife in Cheshire on February 11 last year
The murdered teenager Brianna Ghey (pictured) was attacked in Linear Park, Culcheth, near Warrington, in February last year
Jenkinson and Ratcliffe were named in March this year as Brianna’s murderers
Speaking at the court in London, Richard Littler KC, for Ratcliffe, said: ‘It is culpability and maturity which are at the heart of this application.’
Mr Littler continued: ‘It is right to say that on any analysis of the applicant’s maturity, he is closer to the starting point of a 14-year-old rather than a 17-year-old boy.’
He added: ‘The point we make is age and maturity were very important issues in this case, and could very much affect the end result for this particular applicant.’
Mr Littler said that Ratcliffe was found to have ‘poor social skills’ and ‘immaturity’, as well as ‘a lower-than-expected ability to express what he thinks or articulate his ideas’, adding that the sentence was ‘far too high’.
He said: ‘There is no doubt they were taken into account, but they were not taken into account fully.’
The earlier trial at Manchester Crown Court heard that Brianna had thousands of followers on TikTok, but in reality was a withdrawn, shy and anxious teenager who struggled with depression and rarely left her home.
Jurors were told that the two killers were intelligent, ‘high-functioning’ and came from normal backgrounds, but had a fascination for violence, torture and murder and a ‘thirst for killing’.
Jenkinson, who lived close to the park in Culcheth, had been asked to leave her school, Culcheth High, over giving cannabis-laced gummy sweets to another pupil and joined Brianna’s school, Birchwood High, in October 2022.
Jenkinson and Ratcliffe, both then 15, lured 16-year-old Brianna (pictured) to a park in the village of Culcheth and stabbed her to death in a ‘frenzied’ attack
Brianna mother Esther, pictured with her daughter Brianna
She quickly became ‘obsessed’ with Brianna, and along with Ratcliffe drew up a ‘kill list’ of four other youths they wanted to harm until Brianna had the ‘misfortune’ to be befriended by Jenkinson.
The pair discussed the murder for weeks, detailed in Jenkinson’s handwritten murder plan and phone messages found by detectives.
Jenkinson also told Ratcliffe she wanted to stab Brianna ‘jus coz its fun lol… I want to see the pure horror on her face and hear her scream’.
They lured Brianna to Linear Park on February 11 last year where she was attacked with Ratcliffe’s 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 inventing a cover story.
But both teenagers were arrested an hour later, with the murder weapon and blood-stained clothing found in Ratcliffe’s bedroom.
Deanna Heer KC, for the CPS, said Ratcliffe’s attitude towards Brianna was ‘dehumanising’ and that the killing involved ‘sadistic conduct’, adding that the sentence was not ‘manifestly excessive’.
She added that the minimum term was ‘appropriate… on the evidence in the case’ and that Ratcliffe’s autism diagnosis ‘did not prevent him from understanding what he was doing’.
Court artist sketch of Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe, both 16, appearing at Manchester Crown Court in February
A photograph of the murder weapon issued by Cheshire Police during the trial last December
Ms Heer said: ‘The overwhelming evidence is that Eddie is a highly intelligent young man.
‘It was apparent from the evidence that Eddie was neither suggestible nor biddable.
‘Eddie demonstrated himself throughout to be just as enthusiastic about what they were going to do as Scarlett.’
The hearing before Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, Mr Justice Murray and Mr Justice Lavender will conclude later on Thursday.
