Attorney General rejects appeal over Aria Thorpe’s acquittal, despite jury misdirection

Aria Thorpe, nine, died after being stabbed in the chest at her home in Weston-super-Mare. The teenage boy who admitted holding the knife was acquitted of murder and manslaughter, and the Attorney General has now refused the family’s request to refer the case to the Court of Appeal, despite acknowledging that the jury was misdirected.

Aria’s family argue the jury should have been allowed to consider whether the boy was reckless, and say they will continue seeking a remedy and clarification of the law. Their local MP, Suella Braverman, asked Attorney General Ellie Reeves to refer the legal issue under section 36 of the Criminal Justice Act 1972; Reeves concluded the case did not raise a point of law requiring further clarification. The family say they plan to campaign for “Aria’s Law” to clarify manslaughter rules.