Brianna Ghey’s mum reveals ‘emotional’ face to face meeting with mother of daughter’s killer
11 March 2024, 06:05 | Updated: 11 March 2024, 08:55
Mother of murdered trans teenager Brianna Ghey meets killer’s family
The mum of Brianna Ghey has revealed she met with the mother of the girl who murdered her daughter.
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Esther Ghey, 37, said she had a private meeting with the mother of Scarlett Jenkinson, Emma Sutton, and her uncle in her hometown of Warrington last week.
Jenkinson, aged 15 at the time, planned the “sadistic” killing of transgender teenager Brianna last year.
Jenkinson was given a minimum term of 22 years, minus time on remand, last month while Ratcliffe got 20 years minimum minus term on remand at Manchester Crown Court.
Brianna was stabbed 28 times in the head, neck, chest and back after being lured to Linear Park, Culcheth, a village near Warrington on the afternoon of February 11 last year.
Ms Ghey said she met with the mother of Jenkinson, who is a former teacher at a Catholic school, in the hope they may be able to work together on the campaign she set up in honour of Brianna.
She said of the meeting: "Both of us are mothers who are trying to navigate something nobody should ever have gone through.
"It was emotional. Both Scarlett's mum and uncle are very nice people, just normal people.
"We spoke about very personal things, and she was very open with me and she was so respectful as well.
"I think her coming to see me shows a great deal of bravery on her part as well.
"And yes, it was a very emotional meeting but I'm so glad I did that and appreciate them for giving me that opportunity as well.”
Ms Ghey set up the mental health campaign Peace in Mind in tribute to her daughter Brianna last year.
The campaign’s goal is to fund mindfulness lessons in every school and help students navigate mental health challenges.
Ms Ghey said she does not feel any hate or resentment towards Jenkinson or her family.
She continued: "I know that all of these emotions, and feelings of hate, is only going to impact me.
"If I feel hate, I could either take what's happened and hide away at home, actually crippled with hate and wanting to get revenge and all of that kind of stuff.
"Or I can try to take a more positive approach and actually make something good out of a horrible, I feel like horrible is too small a word, out of a horrific situation.
"And I choose to do the latter. I don't want to be a victim, I don't want to be, I don't want this to impact the rest of my life and stop me from progressing and to stop me being productive and hopefully making a change in society as well."
Speaking after the sentencing last month, Jenkinson’s family said they were “truly sorry” for the teenager's actions and what she had done was “beyond their worst nightmares”.
They said of Ms Ghey: “Her compassion is overwhelming and we are forever grateful.”
It comes after Ms Ghey recently met with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan to discuss the campaign. She also previously met with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
She called for more “drastic action” on the Online Safety Bill after receiving hateful messages during the trial of her daughter’s killers.
She said the new law “is not going to protect children and young people from seeing that kind of horrible content because I don't think that would be deemed as harmful”.
