The trial of a 14-year-old boy in Britain has begun, accused of stabbing a girl with a knife, in a row over a Snapchat video.
The newspaper reported,The IndependentThe court heard witnesses who said that the boy, without giving his name, was “laughing” after the crime was committed, and ran away after he stabbed 12-year-old “Ava White.”
About 20 people from Ava’s family and friends arrived for the hearing at Liverpool Crown Court, on Monday, where the defendant, who denies committing the crime, appeared via “video communication” technology.
Prosecutor Charlotte Newell said that “Ava and the accused were downtown with friends” on the evening of November 25 last year, and they met “by chance”.
The court heard that the defendant was in possession of a knife length of 7.5 cm, and pleaded guilty to possession of an “offensive weapon”.
“This knife was used to stab Ava, causing her fatal wound,” Newell said.
She added, “This was done after there was an argument about the fact that he and his group filmed, without permission, Ava and others in her group.”
And she continued, “Ava in particular was terrified and angry because they were filming her, and she was determined to delete the footage.”
Newell said that Ava and her friends, aged between 11 and 15, “drank some alcohol”, and were near the Royal Court Theater, before security staff asked them to move from the scene at about 8:15 pm.
They moved to Richmond Street, where the defendant and his friends saw them, and began shooting a video that he would later share on Snapchat, Newell said.
Ava and one of her friends asked them to stop filming and to delete the footage, but the defendant and his friends “mocked” Ava, causing her to “run” towards them.
A 20-second clip was shown in court, showing the stabbing, which took place when Ava approached the defendant, amid the tears of those present.
Newell said that Ava approached the defendant but that she “did not make any violent movement other than pushing, and she was not in possession of any weapon.”
She pointed out that the boy “stabbed her in the neck.” The defendant claims that he was acting in self-defence, out of fear of being assaulted or stabbed.
“His reaction at the time was to smile, laugh and run, leaving Ava to die,” Newell added.
The trial is expected to last three weeks, before a final verdict is issued on the defendant, according to the newspaper.