Why has the suspect in the Southport stabbings not been named?

Questions have been raised about why the identity of the teenager arrested over the Southport stabbings has not been made public.

Detectives have been given more time to question the 17-year-old over the incident and he remains in custody after being detained on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. No charges have been brought.

At this stage, the boy has not been identified because of his age amid active ongoing criminal proceedings.

The criminal age of responsibility in England and Wales is 10 years old, meaning children aged between 10 and 17 can be arrested and taken to court if they commit a crime.

The identity of defendants and witnesses under the age of 18 who are subject to criminal proceedings in youth courts is protected by automatic reporting restrictions under Section 49 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933.

If a child is charged with an offence and is facing criminal proceedings in adult courts – magistrates’ and crown courts – then magistrates and judges have legal powers to grant anonymity to a child defendant, witness or victim under Section 45 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999.

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Reporting restrictions

Both of these laws ban the press from publishing a child defendant’s name or any detail which could lead to them being identified while the reporting restrictions remain in place.

This is why media reports sometimes say they cannot identify a child involved in a criminal court case for legal reasons.

The automatic restrictions technically begin once court proceedings are active – when a suspect has been charged and is appearing in court for the first time – which could give rise to questions as to why the teenager in the Southport case has still not been identified.

But media organisations typically refrain from identifying any child arrested on suspicion of a crime, having considered their ethical and other legal responsibilities, because there is the prospect this could then lead to prosecution and court proceedings where the reporting restrictions in question will activate.

Press regulator IPSO advises editors to “generally avoid naming children under the age of 18 after arrest for a criminal offence but before they appear in a youth court unless they can show that the individual’s name is already in the public domain, or that the individual (or, if they are under 16, a custodial parent or similarly responsible adult) has given their consent”, adding: “This does not restrict the right to name juveniles who appear in a crown court, or whose anonymity is lifted.”

Anonymous

Child defendants will remain anonymous throughout legal proceedings but these restrictions can be challenged – usually by reporters – after the court case has ended.

If a child is convicted of a crime, having either pleaded guilty or been found guilty after a trial, magistrates and judges have powers to lift reporting restrictions so the defendant can be identified in some circumstances, including if this is considered in the public interest.

Media may try to challenge the anonymity order if identifying the child could help to maintain public confidence in the justice system, or deter others from offending, by allowing full details of the case to be reported.

There could be a strong public interest in lifting reporting restrictions when the convicted child had been involved in significant disorder so the public can be satisfied an offender has been brought to justice, or if the case involved serious offences which undermined the public’s confidence in the safety of their communities, for example.

The restriction automatically ends when the child turns 18.

In February, teenagers Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe were identified for the first time as they were both handed life sentences for the “sadistic” 2023 murder of transgender 16-year-old Brianna Ghey, after a judge lifted a ban on them being named by the press.