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Sounds, music, radio, podcasts. That

0:41

day we'd been out. I'd gone

0:43

out with Brianna's sister and Brianna

0:46

was left in the home alone and

0:48

she messaged me to tell me that she was going

0:50

out. She'd actually got

0:53

on the bus by herself as well,

0:56

which she'd never done that before.

1:02

I was so happy because she

1:04

was going to be going to college this year and

1:07

one of my concerns was how was she going to get to college,

1:10

was she going to be able to get on the bus, so she'd managed to

1:12

do this. It's

1:15

February 11th, 2023. A

1:19

Saturday and CCTV footage shows

1:21

16-year-old Brianna Jai getting

1:23

on board a number 28 bus at

1:25

just before 22.2. She's

1:28

striking, long red hair and wearing

1:31

a fluffy white jacket, tart

1:33

and grey skirt and over the knee white

1:35

socks. But

1:39

while she outwardly looks confident, she's

1:41

anything but. During

1:43

the journey she texts her mum, Esther, to

1:45

tell her she's by herself and she's scared.

1:50

Brianna was extremely outgoing, she

1:52

was funny, she was brave,

1:55

she was strong. You

1:57

always knew when Brianna was around. On

2:00

the other hand, she also struggled

2:02

with a mental health. She struggled

2:04

with eating disorders. Yourself harm in

2:06

and shut anxiety is rough. On.

2:14

Hybrid. Village

2:16

on the out. Warnings

2:18

and interests. We

2:20

only get to meet with

2:23

his senior girls. She

2:25

sat waiting along with a board.

2:27

Somebody. Brianna has never met before.

2:33

Brianna and his you companion cents. A

2:36

minute walk? Too many a park. A

2:38

mile or so stretched a. Disused.

2:40

Railway line shrouded in trees

2:42

and. Popular with bonus and dog

2:45

walkers. The captured

2:47

on Cctv they make their way

2:49

that passing same freeze. On

2:51

the Village Pub before they arrive at

2:53

the entrance. Half. An.

2:57

Hour later, Brianna, his dad.

3:00

On cheated on sales of course

3:02

as the Bbc Northwest and I've

3:04

been following of each week Instead

3:06

of this off. And harrowing story.

3:10

In the special. Edition Asylum for

3:12

I'll be examining what drove

3:14

to children. Law of vulnerable

3:17

young girls to her death. She

3:29

was having confidence.

3:31

In our own way. Too late

3:33

to get attention around. Grew to

3:36

like make people laugh for those

3:38

kinds for the students said lots

3:40

and lots of with these one

3:42

liners and a mills his head

3:44

teacher a search for community high

3:46

school in Warrington. This was where

3:48

Brianna jibe with preparing for her

3:50

to see a sees. She really.

3:52

Did struggle with anxiety. said she

3:54

didn't like Been on the busy

3:56

Commodores. student like it's a lunch

3:58

with all the stupid what

4:00

she did come to school every day and quite often

4:03

that was the only time that she left the house

4:05

but we could see the progress that

4:08

she was making in terms of her anxiety

4:10

and in terms of her eating disorder as

4:12

time was going on. Like

4:14

a lot of teenagers, Brianna wanted to

4:16

be famous and like most her age,

4:19

she loved social media. She

4:21

had a large fan base online,

4:23

around 31,000 followers on her TikTok

4:26

channel. She loved

4:28

going on to TikTok and

4:30

there were numerous conversations we had

4:32

to have with her because she liked to make

4:34

TikTok videos in school, whether that was in the

4:36

school toilets, whether it was in classrooms, whether

4:39

it was walking around school, but we had

4:41

to tell her when it wasn't appropriate so

4:43

she'd be doing it in school. She

4:50

did makeup tutorials, hair

4:52

tutorials as well. She was looking at

4:54

going to one of the local colleges

4:57

to go and do a hair and makeup course. She did have

4:59

a place on that and I think she would have

5:01

been absolutely brilliant. Her own makeup was

5:04

always absolutely flawless even though we used to

5:06

say to her, we can't wear that much makeup if we could

5:08

understand that she did anyway. She

5:11

had quite a lot of followers and she used to

5:13

get lots and lots of likes and

5:15

nice comments. I've got a

5:17

video where she flipped the camera onto herself

5:20

and she says, here I am, the star

5:23

of the show. That is

5:25

exactly, exactly Brianna. Today

5:29

I just checked the back and

5:31

I just checked that and it looked like...you know

5:35

what I mean? Yesterday I was just in

5:37

the Russian stuff. She

5:39

started growing her hair and she was showing interesting

5:41

makeup and then she came out with trans and

5:43

it just wasn't an issue at all. I

5:46

think as a parent all you ever want is for

5:48

your child to be happy and

5:51

she was fearless to be whoever she wanted

5:53

to be and she wanted to identify as

5:55

a female and she wanted to wear a

5:58

girls school uniform. Yeah, she

6:00

just did it. It wasn't a hurdle

6:02

at all for her. She

6:05

sounds like she was a very unique

6:08

person, not afraid of expressing herself.

6:10

Yeah, yeah, she was very unique

6:12

and she was absolutely happy

6:14

to be who she wanted to be.

6:16

And there was no apologies for who

6:18

she wanted to be. She was just, she was out there. Brianna

6:22

started to transition when she was 14. She

6:25

lived in the family home in Birchwood

6:27

with her mum Esther and her older

6:29

sister Alicia. As we've

6:31

already heard, she rarely ventured out. Most

6:34

of her social interactions happened online,

6:37

not particularly unusual, but because

6:39

of her high profile social media

6:42

presence, she was trolled, something her

6:44

mum found upsetting. I

6:46

remember reading it and being like, how do

6:48

you feel about this? Brianna,

6:50

she didn't care. She was just more happy about

6:52

the amount of likes that she was getting and

6:54

it was just more of a duck's back, really.

6:58

A little over an hour after Brianna stepped

7:00

off the bus in culture, Catherine

7:02

Vyse and her husband Andrew were

7:04

walking their dogs in Linear Park. He's

7:07

an ambulance. Somebody has been

7:09

attacked. Okay, take some deep

7:12

breaths. Do you think she's

7:14

been hit? There, they came

7:16

across a bloody body, face down in

7:18

the mud. These

7:20

are Catherine's words from the 999 calls

7:22

she then made, spoken by an

7:25

actor. Is she breathing? No, no, I

7:29

don't think so. I can't see

7:31

her face. It's covered in blood. So

7:33

can you ask your husband to put

7:35

pressure on the wound? I

7:39

can't do anything you can do for us. Oh

7:42

God. A couple

7:44

of miles away, as the police and paramedics made

7:46

their way to the scene, Brianna's

7:48

mum was also walking her dogs.

7:52

We noticed that there was a very high

7:54

police presence in our local area where we

7:56

was walking the dogs and we walked home

7:58

and There was like police. in our history

8:01

as well. And. I

8:07

remember sort of joke. He.

8:10

Said that because his brother doesn't

8:13

come home soon up probably have

8:15

three decrease by it isn't good

8:17

enough for was turned off. Detectives.

8:20

Are investigating the deaths of a

8:22

teenage girl. Insertion officers were called

8:24

to Culture Is Linear Park Warrington

8:26

following reports a girl had suffered

8:29

serious injuries. Emergency services treated a

8:31

teenager both she died at the

8:33

same oh we consider front door.

8:35

In the front door was open and as

8:37

a policeman's to the now. That.

8:39

The Lisa and Day self me

8:41

hear about us and as are

8:44

so the my name. And he said

8:46

do you want. To sit down and I

8:48

just said than that no no I don't either

8:50

one sit down with some. He was often now

8:52

and he said that it found a body Arms

8:54

I remember the first thing I said swim with

8:57

the I knew I knew something was gonna happen.

9:01

Said. A to switch once we linear

9:03

park one which fullest assume a

9:05

railway line and another which ones

9:07

com allow at the top of

9:09

an improvement we on his body.

9:11

Was found on the of the past

9:13

around half a mile from the entrance

9:15

to the park has to offense or

9:17

next to since. She

9:21

did stuff to twenty. Eight times

9:23

in head, neck, and voltage.

9:26

It as is say that she's states you

9:28

a monitor woman in the late teens early

9:30

twenties who has seen close to where we

9:32

on this. Man was

9:34

very. Woman and a

9:37

distinctive style read or purple. Detective

9:40

Chief Superintendent my cousins, his head

9:43

of crime. Constabulary.

9:46

From. speaking of family we're starfish very quickly

9:48

the first name of one of the children

9:50

who brown are going to meet up day

9:52

or not then allowed to make inquiries with

9:54

the local authority around education establishment and by

9:56

joining those dots we're able to identify one

9:58

of the end of it and

10:01

then we were able to put some plans in place to

10:03

make sure that we could identify the second individual and arrest

10:05

them both at the same time. It

10:07

didn't take long. At 7.30pm

10:09

on the day after Brianna's body

10:11

was found, officers went to two

10:14

addresses, one in Colchis and

10:16

one four miles away in the town of Lee. If

10:20

I had made the comment around I can explain what this is about. I

10:22

genuinely think the girl never thought that this would be a problem

10:24

for her and that she would be able to talk her way

10:27

out of it quite easily. Both relatively

10:29

confident in their account and what they were

10:31

saying until they realised quite the weight of

10:33

the evidence that faced them. As

10:37

the interviews took place, officers were

10:39

searching the homes of their two suspects.

10:43

Within hours, they'd recovered a substantial

10:45

and damning pile of evidence. In

10:49

the boys' bedroom, they found a hunting

10:51

knife and a heavily bloodstained jacket and

10:53

trainers. In the girls' bedroom,

10:56

a crumpled handwritten note. In

11:19

the boys' bedroom, they found a very

11:22

tight tunnel area. I say code word. He steps her in the back

11:24

as I step her in the stomach, drags the body into the area.

11:27

We both cover up the area with logs,

11:29

etc. That

11:32

must be pretty unusual to find a piece of

11:34

evidence like that. I think all

11:36

of this indicates just how arrogant the

11:38

two of them were and how they thought they would never get

11:40

caught. And I genuinely believe, you know, to take the knife home

11:42

back to your address and keep it in the house, to keep

11:44

the clothing in the house, to have a list of how you

11:47

are going to execute it. And

11:49

keep that, I think, shows their arrogance that they thought they were

11:51

the cleverest people and no one was ever going to catch them.

12:00

named as 16-year-old Brianna Jane. Her family

12:02

have released a statement this morning in

12:04

which they describe her as a much-loved

12:06

daughter, granddaughter, and baby sister. And they

12:08

say her death has left a massive

12:11

hole in their family. As police continue

12:13

to piece together what had led to

12:15

Brianna's murder, the news of her death

12:17

was filtering through to her school and

12:20

her teacher, Emma Mills. On

12:22

the Sunday, it was later on in the

12:24

day, that I got a phone call and I

12:26

was with my son at the time, and we

12:28

were out. And I think

12:32

the shock of what happened was just immense.

12:34

It's just not something that you

12:36

ever expect to hear. I remember

12:38

being on the phone, and I remember bending

12:41

over double. It's like the shock,

12:43

it was like an emotional shock, but it

12:45

kind of hit me physically as well. And

12:47

my little boy was like, what happened, what

12:50

happened? Brianna's distraught

12:52

family did what they had to, to

12:54

just keep going. It's such

12:56

a blur that I can't, I feel

12:59

like, yeah,

13:01

it was just, it was atrocious. My

13:05

eldest, like slept in the same

13:07

bed as me for a

13:09

couple of weeks afterwards, like we just couldn't

13:11

be apart from each other. I

13:17

didn't only have like the

13:19

mental symptoms, I didn't just feel like the

13:22

anguish I was feeling, but I also like

13:24

had like physical symptoms as well. Like

13:26

my hands were swollen, and my arms

13:28

were swollen, and we

13:30

just all stayed together, and then

13:33

it was so horrific. And like

13:36

Brianna not being in the

13:38

house was so awful. I felt like

13:41

a knee jerk reaction to sort of hideaway,

13:43

like I even wanted to move out, also

13:45

I just wanted to, I think it

13:48

was like, I was in fight or flight, and

13:50

seeing all of the media coverage, I

13:53

didn't want that to happen. I didn't want that

13:55

amount of attention. police

14:00

captured the two suspects walking away

14:02

from the scene of the murder. Then,

14:05

when they were arrested, their phones

14:07

were seized. Phones are minds

14:09

of information. They contain pretty much everything

14:12

we do. This was quite unusual for the

14:14

amount of planning that went into it that

14:16

we had evidence of, and this sort of

14:18

entire timeline is told by WhatsApp messages, which

14:20

in itself is quite an unusual feature. They've

14:23

also been quite naive around thinking that the

14:25

press is deleting it's all gone away, which

14:27

surprises me slightly with two very, very intelligent

14:30

individuals, which they are. They're both high functioning.

14:32

They're both very clever. Their naivety and some

14:34

respects has surprised us. What

14:37

police found on those mobile phones

14:39

revealed a chilling escalation in the

14:42

pair's intent. The

14:44

girl had drawn up a kill list of

14:46

children, which included the name of a boy

14:48

she didn't like. If

14:51

I do end up killing him, I have

14:53

a really sharp blade, the same

14:55

one that Sweeney Todd uses. If

14:59

we kill him, can I keep some things?

15:02

A couple of teeth and an eye? I

15:05

spent my money. I bought a knife. They

15:09

go from talking horror films to Sweeney

15:11

Todd, and we go from murderous

15:13

text messages to I'm busy having my tea, and

15:15

then back to murderous intent again.

15:18

It's a really warped sequence of events.

15:22

It's really strange. The

15:24

topic of murder in Brianna comes up

15:26

over a period of time, interspersed with

15:28

other messages. You

15:31

die from eating ibuprofen gel. It

15:35

is dangerous, but I'm not sure how much would be lethal. You

15:38

know that girl I mentioned, Brianna? I'm still

15:41

trying to kill her, and

15:43

the easiest way is pill overdose. Plus,

15:46

people already know she's depressed and shit,

15:48

so nobody would get sus. But

15:50

for some reason, she has a high tolerance. Like,

15:53

I gave her some today that should have been enough to kill her.

15:57

Try doubling the dose. What if you added it

15:59

to a drink? What about in

16:01

a Mackey's milkshake? Not

16:04

long after this conversation, Brianna's

16:06

mum Esther remembers her daughter

16:08

becoming violently sick. It

16:10

happened in January, a month before her

16:12

death, and just a couple of months after

16:15

the girl had befriended her. She

16:17

was curious about Brianna and had

16:20

become infatuated, obsessed even. A

16:23

few days later, another chilling WhatsApp

16:25

exchange. If

16:27

we can't get him tomorrow, we can

16:30

kill Brianna. She's back from

16:32

holiday. Yeah,

16:35

it'll be easier. And I want to

16:37

see if it'll scream like a man or a girl. Meet

16:40

me at the wooden post in Linea

16:42

at 12. We'll go over the

16:44

plan again, and I'll show you where I'm killing

16:46

her. And then we both walk to the

16:48

library to meet her. Grab onto

16:50

Brianna, slit her throat. When she starts

16:52

to fall, stab her in the back

16:55

and pass me the knife. I

16:57

want to stab her at least once, even

17:00

if she's dead, just because it's fun.

17:06

I'm not sure it ever was a fantasy. I

17:08

think what we probably had was a girl with

17:10

murderous intents, and then she managed

17:12

to meet someone who shared her views and was

17:14

willing to do that with her. Their

17:17

carefully thought-out plan involved luring

17:19

Brianna to Linea Park by suggesting

17:21

they could take cocaine together,

17:24

something she later claimed they'd done

17:26

before. But their scheme was

17:28

scuppered when Brianna cancelled, telling

17:31

the girl she had a family party to

17:33

attend. I'm

17:35

pissed. Brianna is just last minute

17:37

said she can't come because of stepdad's birthday dinner.

17:41

Let's kill her tomorrow at 6pm. I

17:44

can't because it's a school night. I

17:47

don't want to wait. I just wanted to

17:49

die really badly. I want it

17:51

done ASAP. I want to see

17:53

the pure horror on her face and hear her scream

17:55

in pain. All

17:57

I Want to see is what side dick it had. What?

18:01

Are the body was you can keep. Just.

18:03

Part of it flash and an eyeball.

18:06

A very my own of it's a nice. They

18:09

are pretty eyes. I

18:11

don't have many of us have ever

18:14

seen the level of depravity shown on

18:16

the dehumanizing nature of them. Tax matches

18:18

between the tapes and the hatred towards

18:20

Brianna Ronald Us for no reason whatsoever

18:22

on Just Access for Kill. Some.

18:24

To fifteen year olds that that was ready to stab

18:26

in. Two weeks

18:29

later. Brianna. I'm a sixteen year old

18:31

She calls her friend. Arrange to

18:33

meet again. Plan.

18:36

Is to lean past. She

18:39

the hundred percent coming today. But

18:42

time you to come out. Publicly more on

18:44

one is. A

18:46

seventh us as a as. A one

18:48

it was a thumbs and stuff again Wiki. The

18:52

boy carrying his hunting knife was dropped

18:54

so far side. same squeezing cultures it's

18:56

just a full twelve. Both sides by

18:58

his mother. He met with his accomplice

19:01

outside her home and they said cold

19:03

into the store where he both a

19:05

male they'll have and she's to get

19:07

the to thaw and a. Sport

19:10

the Delta Pack brownies

19:13

and a sandwich outside.

19:16

She then tax Brianna to tell her to

19:18

get the number twenty. Eight both to

19:20

Pulses Library. the

19:22

two teenagers and made for the full

19:24

stop and minute walk away. Three courses.

19:27

As an hour later we and is too.

19:29

Long. I

19:34

don't one minute think the eve of them went along

19:36

not don't think and that nothing would happen. They knew

19:38

before they left their houses that they were gonna kill

19:40

the on a lot that. The

19:44

three teenagers with unseen by several

19:46

witnesses or say made their way

19:48

to linear path. They were quick

19:50

to people with men that we

19:52

honor and wants a boy and

19:55

girl dressed in dark clothing brianna

19:57

with the and one who smiled

19:59

as. By walking in the

20:01

opposite direction, the other two were

20:03

heads down. With that holds up.

20:05

Solid. In O'brien

20:08

I was a very vulnerable girl. She

20:10

was isolated in some respects socially and sense of.

20:13

She looked a lot of life on a phone

20:15

and tix often and lights and I said this

20:17

was the ultimate betrayal of someone whom she considered

20:19

a friend who has lord around the house and

20:21

and that's one of those tragic aspect to this

20:24

case is that she thought she had a friend

20:26

that actually.from his palms killer. It's.

20:28

Quite a while to find out here. The people. That

20:30

had been charged Where we suspect

20:32

said that that we knew who

20:35

they were Both I didn't want

20:37

to acknowledge it. And.

20:40

I fell at the time his father. doc.

20:42

That was the worst possible thing. That.

20:44

Could have happened knowing it's it's

20:46

somebody day the earth as she

20:48

trusted. The. Girl Brianna

20:50

had trusted hadn't only been

20:52

exchanging stocks conspiratorial, so messages

20:54

with her accomplice. When police

20:57

analyze data, they sound on

20:59

the girls mobile phone. They.

21:01

Discovered this a month to saw she

21:03

descended brianna she bought an app. Which.

21:06

Allowed her to access the dark web,

21:09

She. Was woken up. And images or

21:11

video footage of people being taught and

21:13

kills. I think the access to that

21:15

material on the dark web obsessed with

21:18

showed level of to altitude apps and

21:20

bill. Secondly it played into this picture

21:22

murderous intent on the fact that she

21:24

was obsessed with violence and cruelty or

21:27

not says for killing. He

21:30

lived at home with his mom and

21:32

dad says professionals. In court

21:34

he was described as a socially

21:36

awkward and in young boy. But

21:39

he passed Htc a cease and was

21:41

teaching himself a levels with a seem

21:43

to go into university. To study

21:46

microbiology. I think their downfall

21:48

as been that arrogance around the up that they

21:50

thought they could take another human life and then

21:52

sold That would be no com often sold on

21:54

the never get caught. And

21:56

wrongs of course, they may

21:58

have been highly intelligent but they

22:00

were hopelessly naive. She

22:03

tried to cover her tracks, posting a

22:05

tribute to Brianna on social media after

22:07

the killing. Then, the day

22:09

after the murder, she inexplicably

22:12

sent a text to her accomplice.

22:16

Do you have anxiety about getting caught? Probably.

22:22

You're not going to get caught, don't worry. Police

22:25

are shy here. I haven't

22:27

been caught yet, and Anna's a lot less

22:29

smart than you. Just

22:32

three days after Brianna was killed,

22:34

they were both charged with her murder.

22:37

Ursula Doyle is the deputy chief

22:39

crown prosecutor for Merseyside and Cheshire.

22:42

Both defendants were charged with murder on

22:44

the basis of a joint

22:47

enterprise, where two or more

22:49

defendants are held fully responsible

22:51

for an offense. And

22:54

it can be that the defendants

22:56

participate in the offense, but actually

22:58

their role is different and their

23:01

participation is different. So

23:03

in this case, the crown's case was

23:05

that it was Boy Y who actually

23:07

inflicted the stab wounds upon Brianna, but

23:10

Gerlach is equally responsible for

23:12

murder because she was involved

23:15

in the learning of Brianna

23:18

to the park. So although she

23:20

didn't wield the knife, she actively

23:23

encouraged, assisted, planned the

23:25

murder. And so both defendants

23:28

are jointly responsible for

23:30

murder. As the teenagers

23:33

were charged and processed, Brianna's friends

23:35

and classmates at Birchwood Community High

23:37

School struggled to come to terms with

23:39

what had happened. They

23:41

were scared, they were upset. Some

23:45

students just didn't know how to react.

23:47

You know, somebody that they knew, somebody that they

23:49

saw around school. The

23:51

idea that this had happened to her was

23:54

just unbelievable, really.

23:57

So the mood was exciting. During

24:03

an and Sit in the Reflection.

24:06

Rooms Students: Are you upset?

24:09

Let's. The students panicking. Don't.

24:11

Worry. About the

24:13

press intrusion outside making quite scary

24:15

for them to lead to worry

24:18

about. The

24:20

what would they do in a that certain

24:22

situation If something happens then. How

24:24

did the kids reaction school when when I

24:26

found out that it was people he knew

24:28

browner. Think the overwhelming reaction

24:31

was probably anger. And

24:33

children react in different ways. Name's

24:35

been written. On Target. Whoa things.

24:37

Being said, an earnest, be

24:39

very careful how to manage.

24:43

And. The not confirm and he said. Are

24:45

also to support the students in

24:48

her they were feeling and it

24:50

is nation that. That. They'd been

24:52

given all that they'd found. Out So

24:54

baby baby baby. Tricky to

24:56

balance and definitely added. And

24:59

what's more, Complex.

25:03

And. And difficult like

25:05

getting more was already a horrible

25:07

situation to be a. Counselor

25:10

who brought him to help deal with

25:12

the huge outpouring of grief. Meanwhile,

25:19

said she was organized by the

25:21

transgender community were held in Bristol

25:24

and Liverpool. Several

25:26

more over the following days. Across

25:29

the Uk we will some together

25:31

we will show a free. So

25:33

far I've seen a com hello

25:35

hi will see you know to

25:38

thought everyone plate regardless of whether

25:40

they'd known or or not. It

25:42

says everyone years for a reason

25:44

and villainy on the show is

25:47

a ball far and so the

25:49

response. I.

25:51

Was completely overwhelmed that I didn't really want that

25:53

could be off and I wanted to keep everything

25:55

paris know like a it was something that

25:57

was so personally the most as often so. There

26:00

are countless for them. When I saw

26:02

the videos and m everybody coming together

26:04

to celebrate. Be on the Fly! It.

26:07

Changed my view on every then a

26:10

made me feel like there is good

26:12

out there and that is the census

26:14

community as well. Even though he was

26:16

sliced bread quite far and wide people

26:18

were coming together in a given southern

26:20

not community feel and. To show that last,

26:22

agree on it. Manifold

26:28

schedules and even. Let

26:30

the reporting on Brown his funeral. Or

26:33

thought the. Dishes

26:35

What? Brianna wu one. Like

26:37

it as a sub before. like Brianna wanted

26:39

to be famous and. In

26:43

or maybe software issue like.

26:46

The shield out. Tens

26:55

of thousands of pounds slotted

26:57

into crowdfunding page to raise

27:00

money for Piano Sunlight. Said.

27:02

Inevitably came the tolls.

27:05

I went on the fundraiser pace to

27:07

check your end of his like obscene

27:09

images and all this kind of stuff

27:11

and think the worst thing is that

27:13

it was directed to Brianna. so if

27:15

it was direct smith. I.

27:18

Could handle that. Book the fact that

27:20

is directed, see my title of his

27:22

and say come from the yeah, that

27:24

was our mail. Really difficult. So.

27:27

Police investigating sitting all sixteen year

27:29

old Brianna Joyce said that there

27:31

Now considering whether it could have

27:33

been a hate crime school though

27:35

some to see suggestions. That Brianna

27:38

was murdered because she was transgender.

27:40

The. police quickly through the house we never

27:42

built this case around transgender l of

27:45

this was about the matter of a

27:47

and you'll need vulnerable girls we obviously

27:49

know that was at kill list which

27:51

or five people honest brianna was one

27:53

of them down it was the only

27:55

passed on that list to was transgender

27:58

and this was about madras intends for

28:00

somebody I think the fact that Brianna

28:02

was vulnerable through a sort of isolation

28:04

and her anxiousness made

28:06

her more accessible to them. And that

28:08

I think tragically is what led them choosing Brianna.

28:11

Obviously, we've seen the transphobic messages

28:13

that particularly the boy has used in

28:15

the case. Actually, the girl was quite

28:17

obsessed with her. I think that sort

28:19

of speculation is one of

28:22

the hardest parts of dealing

28:24

with Brianna's death. Lots

28:26

of kind of insinuation

28:29

and also accusation about

28:33

bullying. And I think what was

28:35

really hard was that she was portrayed in the

28:37

media as a victim and she didn't live a

28:39

life as a victim. She was someone

28:41

that was loud

28:44

and proud and confident in

28:46

who she was. At

28:50

the end of November, nine months after

28:52

they were arrested, the girl and

28:54

boy faced trial. Brianna's

28:57

mum, Esther, and her dad, Peter

29:00

Spooner, arrived at Manchester Crown Court

29:02

to watch the case get underway.

29:05

questions turned to a key. I'm sure

29:08

you would be sad that most children

29:10

denied murder.

29:15

In her police interviews, she'd claimed that

29:17

soon after they'd arrived at the park,

29:19

Brianna had gone to meet a boy from Manchester,

29:22

a story she'd told her

29:24

accomplice to stick to. He

29:26

didn't. He told police

29:28

that she'd killed Brianna. By

29:30

the time she got to court, she'd

29:32

abandoned the story about Brianna meeting a

29:34

boy and blamed him for the stabbing.

29:38

Visibly upset, she told the jury, I

29:40

heard a noise like someone screaming and

29:42

that's when I turned around. She said,

29:44

I saw boy why stabbing Brianna. When

29:47

the boys asked what happened, he describes how

29:49

he went to a tree in the park

29:51

to relieve himself and when he turned around,

29:53

he says he saw the girl stabbing

29:56

Brianna in the side in the back two or three times.

29:58

The boy gave him a little bit of a shock. Evidence

30:00

using a keyboard. Sitting behind

30:02

a desk. In a side room is a

30:04

cold rain. Some. Says was

30:06

spoken by an intermediary sitting beside

30:09

him and watched by the jewelry

30:11

in the courtroom via videolink. His

30:13

words appeared on a screen as they were

30:15

tight House. The. Jury was

30:17

told the following his arrest he

30:20

gradually stop speaking to anyone apart

30:22

from his mother and have been

30:24

diagnosed with selective mutism and autism

30:27

spectrum disorder. Has

30:29

the mental health of either of the defendants

30:31

played into. That. The case that

30:33

you a a bill against an old investigation.

30:36

We. Often do a case around their mental

30:38

health. You know A take the view that

30:40

they both knew what they do it. They

30:42

were both I'll function and individuals the both

30:45

very bright. They planned over a period of

30:47

time. I don't believe it was someone in

30:49

a mental health crisis is so connected. This

30:51

was polls. A was prepared and. The

30:54

girl admitted she synthesised about

30:56

killing Brianna. But she claimed

30:58

it was only fun to say and

31:00

she never would have gone through with

31:02

it. He said that although she said

31:04

images about killing. By our

31:07

beliefs serious. About.

31:09

We honest lot being found on his

31:12

Justice and Train. As he said this,

31:14

after he'd seen The Dell stop Brianna,

31:16

he crouched down and touched her to

31:18

find out where she injured, and he.

31:20

Got lots of a lot of. A

31:26

little over three weeks after the trial

31:28

started. The jewelry listen to how to.

31:30

Consider that. Verdicts They returned last inside

31:33

hours later. Sorry for interrupting. Know got

31:35

some breaking news A To bring you

31:37

a boy and a girl those aged

31:39

sixteen have been found guilty of the

31:42

murder of a trans teenager and Sasha

31:44

the boy and girl cannot be named

31:46

for legal reasons. Let's go straight to

31:49

my to Crown court we seek to

31:51

next on. At. length this was

31:53

a risk crime this was

31:55

a sixteen year old girl

31:57

brianna jai who was stabbed

32:00

28 times in a park in broad

32:03

daylight surrounded by dog walkers and people

32:05

out walking at the weekend The boy

32:07

and the girl who've both been convicted

32:09

were just 15 years old They

32:12

were children when they carried this out Neither

32:15

of the children showed any emotion when

32:17

the verdicts were announced Their

32:19

parents though were in tears Outside

32:23

Brianna's mum and dad gave

32:25

their reaction In

32:28

case you're told, I'll

32:30

have moments where I thought some

32:32

were for the defendants Because

32:34

they had ruined their own lives as

32:37

well as ours But

32:40

now knowing the true nature

32:42

and seeing neither display an

32:44

ounce of remorse for what they

32:46

have done to Brianna I

32:49

have lost all sympathy that

32:51

I may have previously had for them And

32:54

I am glad that they will spend many years

32:56

in prison and away from

32:58

society We

33:01

spoke a few days before she was taken from me

33:03

and we were arranged to meet each other It

33:06

breaks me every day to know I'll

33:10

never get that chance again I

33:14

wish I'd been there to protect her, that's

33:16

something I must live with The

33:18

suffering from this horrific incident should never happen

33:21

And they hope no other family ever experiences

33:23

the torture this can bring Today

33:33

is Brianna's birthday, it would have been

33:35

her 17th birthday We've

33:39

chose that day to hold this fundraiser

33:42

to celebrate Brianna's life And

33:44

pink was Brianna's favourite colour as well, so that's why

33:46

we've chosen to wear pink Esther

33:48

has launched a fundraising campaign in Brianna's

33:50

memory The Peace in

33:53

Mind campaign aims to provide training for teachers

33:55

on mindfulness skills for pupils I knew

33:57

how much it had helped me It

34:00

helps with my mental resilience and I knew

34:02

that it was helping me through those initial

34:05

stages of grief as well. It can improve

34:07

empathy and it can improve self-compassion as well.

34:09

I don't know, in my mind I thought

34:11

that it's got to be a balance. Like

34:13

if something so horrific happens then maybe something

34:16

really good could come out of it. And

34:18

I think being honest, that can't be for nothing. We

34:24

still do not know to this day why

34:26

they've done it, what sort of led

34:29

them to want to do it. Obviously

34:31

now they've preyed on the fact that they thought

34:34

it was a fantasy. But when you

34:36

read those messages it was quite clear that was a plan that

34:38

wasn't a fantasy. It was absolutely heinous in

34:40

what they've done. It was

34:42

the most brutal, cold-blooded, cruel

34:45

attack on someone who was a vulnerable and

34:47

anxious child. It was

34:49

just incredibly horrific. I

34:53

don't think I ever will get over it.

34:55

There's a hole in my heart, that's the

34:58

only way that I can describe it. And

35:00

I think that that grief is

35:02

always going to be there and I'm always

35:04

going to miss her. But

35:06

then I'm hoping to just keep

35:08

her memory alive so that in

35:11

a way, although she's gone, she'll

35:14

always be there with me as well. This

35:24

Farland 4 podcast was presented by

35:26

Katie Barnfield and produced by Hayley

35:28

Mortimer. The technical producer was

35:31

Richard Hannaford and the journalism assistant was

35:33

Tim Fernley. The editor was Carl Johnston.

35:36

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35:38

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35:40

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