Dea-John Reid: Teen guilty of killing boy stabbed in Birmingham

Dea-John went out to play football with friends when he was stabbed

A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of killing a teenager who was stabbed after going out to play football.

Dea-John Reid died in the Kingstanding area of Birmingham on 31 May 2021.

A jury heard he was "hunted down" by a group shouting racial slurs and stabbed in front of multiple witnesses, following a confrontation over a bag.

At Birmingham Crown Court, George Khan, 39, Michael Shields, 36, and two teenagers who were charged with his murder were acquitted of all charges.

The convicted teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was cleared of his murder, but found guilty of manslaughter.

Hollie Davies, 36, of Waldon Walk, in Birmingham, was acquitted of assisting an offender.

Family 'mortified' by acquittals

Jurors heard Dea-John had been out with his friends when one of the group was accused of trying to steal a bag by other teenagers.

Dea-John's mother Joan Morris (centre) said her son was a "talented young man" who was loved "so much"

A confrontation ensued, the trial heard, and in CCTV footage played to jurors, Dea-John was seen being chased through streets, pursued by teenagers armed with a wrench and a large kitchen knife.

A post-mortem examination confirmed the year-nine pupil at Harborne Academy was killed by a stab wound to the chest.

A spokesman for Dea-John's family said they were "mortified at the verdict".

Bishop Dr Desmond Jaddoo said the family stated the CCTV footage shown to the court in which Dea-John is seen being chased by an armed and masked teenager "clearly shows intent", however jurors felt they could not be sure the defendants were guilty based on the evidence provided.

Analysis

By Phil Mackie, Midlands correspondent

It's become a tragically familiar scene. A distraught mother surrounded by her close family at the location where her child died.

When Dea-John's mother, Joan Morris, broke down in tears surrounded by flowers and cards a few days after he died from a single stab wound, her grief was plain to see.

Too many young people have lost their lives in Birmingham in recent years, and in nearly every case the cause has been the kind of petty dispute that, in previous generations, would have been settled in a playground and not with a knife or a gun.

Some incredible work is being done in the city and the wider West Midlands by ex-criminals, schools, local authorities and the police to try to persuade teenagers to stop carrying weapons, but the message still isn't always getting through.

Dea-John's death prompted an outpouring of grief in the community, with hundreds gathering to attend a vigil in the days following the attack.

The convicted teenager, who was 14 at the time of the stabbing, is due to return to court for sentencing on 5 May.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the prosecution also relied on evidence from a bloodstained glove recovered near the scene which had both the convicted teenager's DNA and Dea-John's blood on it.

Kate Seal of the CPS said: "I cannot begin to imagine the crippling sense of loss felt by Dea-John's family and friends.

"Such unnecessary violence has no place in our society and the death of Dea-John Reid should have never happened."