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Youth Knife Trials in Birmingham and Liverpool Center on Intent and Evidence of Planning

Prosecutors are using diaries, social media and CCTV to argue premeditated attacks.

Overview

  • In Birmingham, a girl who was 13 at the time is on trial for attempted murder after a neck stabbing at school, with the jury told the issue is whether she intended to kill.
  • The court heard of diary entries and messages referencing plans to kill, CCTV of the attack, and a recovered knife, while a staff member said the defendant stated, “I wanted to kill her.”
  • Agreed facts read to jurors confirmed the Birmingham defendant has pleaded guilty to having an offensive weapon on school premises and to unlawful wounding, but she denies attempted murder.
  • The Birmingham victim testified she had told the defendant to “kill yourself” in a Snapchat group before the attack, providing context to prior exchanges highlighted in court.
  • In Liverpool, a boy now 15 denies attempted murder after CCTV showed a 15-year-old stabbed 11 times and his 14-year-old girlfriend stabbed once; he admits the stabbings and has pleaded guilty to lesser wounding charges as prosecutors argue the attack was planned after an earlier altercation.