Judge rules teenage killer can be named after press argued for lifting of anonymity
After considering applications from the press, Justice Choudhury KC has agreed with media submissions arguing for the teenage killer to be named. But the restriction has not been formally lifted so we cannot name the defendant yet. There is a possibility of an appeal from the defence.
Key events
Leo’s killer attacked a 79-year-old woman, who “screamed” when he pushed her down, within half an hour before he stabbed the schoolboy, the court has heard.
Rachel Brand KC, prosecuting, said:
She was walking alone in the park on the afternoon of Tuesday 21 January last year at about three o’clock in the afternoon.
(The defendant) walked closely behind her, in fact she spoke to him – she asked him ‘do you want me to move aside?’.
(The boy) forcefully pushed her from behind. It caused her to fall forward onto her hands and knees.
Birmingham Crown Court heard that the only injuries to the elderly woman were soreness and muscle strain, but she was “shocked and alarmed” about what happened to her. Brand said the boy “turned and smiled” at the woman after the attack.
The proceedings have started again now the lunch break is over.
The prosecution then gave some pre-sentencing remarks and showed drone footage of the park in the immediate aftermath of the murder to the court, which is packed with family members, police, legal representatives and journalists. The court has adjourned for a lunch break now and will resume with the prosecution again at about 14:00.
Addressing the safety of the defendant in the secure institution he is being detained in, Justice Choudhury KC said:
Many of the incidents of violence recorded as involving the defendant over the last year while in detention have involved violence by him on others or on himself.
The judge said some of the other boys in the facility already know the defendant’s identity, which “has not resulted in any attacks” on him.
Judge agrees to delay in lifting reporting restrictions to allow appeal
Justice Choudhury KC has said the reporting restrictions around naming the defendant will stay in place for a further 24 hours to allow an appeal to be considered in the case.
The judge said factors of note favouring the lifting of restrictions included that the case is a matter of “substantial public interest” as knife crime, particularly among young people, is a matter of public concern.
The media submissions argued the previous attacks on vulnerable women carried out by the killer before he murdered Leo also made this a matter of public interest.
The judge noted that inclusion of the defendant’s name in reporting means the coverage is more likely to be read, as the media also highlighted in their submissions.
The judge said factors weighing against lifting the reporting restrictions included the welfare of the defendant, and the potential negative effects on his mental health and rehabilitation if named.
But after summarising the arguments that had been laid out to him, Justice Choudhury KC said the public interest around the case and commitment to open justice meant the defendant’s identity will be lifted, although not immediately.
The judge said the public would want to know “what could have led a child to commit such acts”.
Judge rules teenage killer can be named after press argued for lifting of anonymity
After considering applications from the press, Justice Choudhury KC has agreed with media submissions arguing for the teenage killer to be named. But the restriction has not been formally lifted so we cannot name the defendant yet. There is a possibility of an appeal from the defence.
At 12 years old, Leo is thought to have been the youngest victim of knife crime in the West Midlands.
Justice Choudhury KC is back from his deliberation and will make a decision about whether or not he will lift the reporting restriction shortly.
Leo Ross’s foster family is in court this morning to hear the judge pass his sentence, due this afternoon.
Leo Ross’s killer remains ‘a young and vulnerable human being’, defence lawyer says
Defence lawyer Alistair Webster KC is arguing against the lifting of the reporting restriction. He told the court it was not in the public interest to name the defendant, adding there is significant risk to his rehabilitation if his identity is revealed.
He said:
These were shocking offences which have caused a great deal of sorrow and ongoing sense of loss to the families and victims involved.
We recognise the public and the press will be very interested in how the court deals with the sentence and what the sentence is …
But it is sometimes easy to confuse the public interest with an interest on behalf of the public.
While accepting what the defendant “did was very wrong”, the defence lawyer added: “He remains a human being and a young and vulnerable human being.”
According to the Mirror, one application from the media has been raised by Carl Jackson, a court reporter for Birmingham Live.
Justice Choudhury KC has adjourned the court to re-read submissions from the media who want the defendant’s name to be revealed. The court is expected to reconvene in about half an hour.
Sentencing hearing at Birmingham Crown Court begins
The sentencing hearing has begun. First, there will be technical arguments heard about the naming of the defendant, 15, whose identity has not been revealed due to legal restrictions around his age.
We are just waiting for the sentencing hearing at Birmingham Crown Court to begin now. It should do shortly.
Leo was found by a member of the public having been stabbed in the stomach at about 3.40pm on 21 January 2025. Police said it was a “chaotic and absolutely traumatic scene”. He was transported to hospital where he died from his injuries at about 7.30pm.
Police said he had been speaking to a friend on the phone, arranging to meet near a tree in Trittiford Mill Park. His friend turned up at the meeting point but Leo never did.
Leo was ‘the sweetest, kindest boy’ whose life was ‘cut short by a senseless act’, family says
In a statement released after his death, Leo’s foster family, the Westons, said:
Not a day goes by where we don’t think about Leo. His loss has impacted us deeply and his absence is felt constantly.
Leo was the sweetest, kindest boy who put others before himself. He was loved by all that knew him, he made friends with everyone he met, young or old.
He was wise beyond his years, full of knowledge and facts, full of life. A life cut short by a senseless act.
We hope justice is served and we can get some closure, whatever the outcome, it still does not give Leo his life back, the life he truly deserved to live to its fullest.
Leo’s birth mother Rachel Fisher said:
My son Leo was the sweetest, most kind-hearted boy. He didn’t have a bad bone in his body.
My baby’s life was stolen for no reason what so ever. My life will never be the same again without him. He will be loved and missed forever.
Teenage boy who admitted murdering Leo Ross, 12, due to be sentenced today
A teenage boy who murdered 12-year-old schoolboy Leo Ross in Birmingham last year will be sentenced later today.
The hearing at Birmingham Crown Court is likely to last all day and will contain information readers may find distressing.
On 29 January 2026, a 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to murdering Leo by stabbing him in the stomach during a random attack in parkland.
Leo was thought to have been making his way home from his school, the Christ Church, Church of England Secondary Academy, in Yardley Wood, Birmingham, when he was stabbed on 21 January 2025.
His attacker, who was 14 at the time, has also admitted two counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in relation to previous attacks on separate victims, as well as having a bladed article on the day he killed Leo.
He denied assault occasioning actual bodily harm on 22 October 2024 and assault by beating on 29 December 2024 in relation to two further victims, and those charges were ordered to lie on file.
Police inquiries established that the knife used to kill Leo was thrown into a nearby river, and that the boy responsible, riding a bike, had previously attacked several women in local parkland.
An inquiry by West Midlands police also found that the killer opted to wait around to talk to officers at the murder scene, falsely claiming he had stumbled across Leo lying fatally injured beside the River Cole.
It emerged that Leo had no connection with his attacker and was killed in what senior officers believe was a random and unprovoked stabbing. The defendant is expected to appear in front of Justice Choudhury KC for sentencing.