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A man who was involved in the fatal stabbing of a teenage boy has had his sentence increased by the Court of Appeal.

Harleigh Hepworth, 17, died in March 2024 after being stabbed in the heart in a Wolverhampton park.

Jovarn Esterine, 18, was sentenced to seven years for Harleigh's manslaughter in January and a 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was given a life sentence for murder.

Following an appeal by the Solicitor General, Esterine's sentence was quashed on Friday and replaced by a nine-year term.

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Harleigh, who was from Rugeley, Staffordshire, was killed on 7 March 2024 after travelling to Wolverhampton with a friend.

They went to West Park, where police said Esterine, who was 17 at the time, and the other teenager asked to borrow the pair's phones.

When Harleigh asked for his device back, he was stabbed in the chest.

Police said that during the attack, Esterine held Harleigh's friend back to stop him from getting involved, before holding a knife to his chest and threatening to kill him unless he handed over the passcode to his phone.

They then made off with the phone and fled the scene.

Passers-by gave Harleigh first aid, but he died at the scene.

Esterine was convicted of manslaughter in November, while the 17-year-old was convicted of murder.

They were both also found guilty of carrying a knife and robbery, and were sentenced in January.

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Following his killers' sentencing, Harleigh's family said he had "a great sense of humour, he was funny, and he was polite" with an "infectious smile".

A victim impact statement read to the Court of Appeal said they would never have the chance to see Harleigh grow up.

The appeal to increase Esterine's sentence was brought by the Solicitor General, Lucy Rigby KC MP, who said she was shocked by the "brutal violence" in the case.

"Jovarn Esterine played an important role in Harleigh's killing before callously leaving him to die on the ground," she said. "Harleigh had his whole life ahead of him and I would like to offer my sympathies to Harleigh's family and friends.

"The court has quite rightly increased Jovarn Esterine's sentence.

"This government will not tolerate mindless violence and I will intervene to ensure justice is served."

"A victory for common sense" or "devastating" –  the contrasting reactions to the statement by five Supreme Court judges that legally the term "woman" means a biological woman.

Behind the different responses lie many of the often bitter and vitriolic arguments that set the country on a long, tricky road towards Wednesday's unambiguous judgement.

When the highest court in the land ruled that sex is binary – meaning legally it should be interpreted as referring to either a biological man or a biological woman – it was providing clarity that had been missing from such conversations for years.

Words like "woman" and "sex" had become loaded with different meanings depending on your viewpoint. Language that for centuries had been uncomplicated and accepted, became a battleground.

The judgement is intended to draw a line under that.

It argues that for the Equality Act to be consistent, the term woman has to mean a biological woman. That does not include biological males, even if they have certificates to say they have changed gender.

This means that where there are, for instance, women-only spaces, then a biological man who identifies as a woman cannot use them. That includes changing rooms, toilets, women's refuges, single-sex hospital wards and anywhere designated as for one sex only.

How much change that will mean in practice will be set out in detailed guidance. Until then, there remain lots of questions and some confusion – and that is challenging in an area where views are so polarised.

From jubilance to devastation

It was Baroness Falkner, the woman who heads the watchdog that regulates equality laws, who described the judgement as a victory for common sense.

She added it was only such a victory if you recognised trans people, "that they exist, they have rights, and their rights must be respected".

She also told the BBC about the abuse she had faced since taking over as chair of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in 2020.

She had previously told the Times that women had the right to question gender identity, and that had led to some very personal abuse from those who disagreed with her.

"I had not realised how difficult the job would be," she said. "It has taken a toll, but if you are in public life you have to take that."

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The second response to the judgement was from the trans rights campaign group TransActual, which described the Supreme Court judgement as devastating.

One of its activists, Jane Fae, told the BBC the judgement felt like a physical body blow, and that it was as if trans people were being excluded from society.

"Today we're feeling very alone" she said. "What does this mean – can I use this loo, can I do that, can I do the other?"

In contrast, the women's groups who fought the case feel vindicated and jubilant.

Helen Joyce, the director of advocacy at the campaign group Sex Matters, says the ruling is "incredibly important for the half of humanity who need single-sex spaces".

Women's groups argue that the ruling is important for reasons of privacy, safety, dignity and discrimination.

The Supreme Court case was brought by a group called For Women Scotland. It wanted to overturn Scottish legislation which said 50% of members on public boards should be women – and trans women were included in their definition.

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The group lost its case in Scotland's highest court but appealed to the UK Supreme Court. The case was heard towards the end of last year.

"What we wanted was clarity in the law – when something is described as a single-sex service, a single-sex space, that this relates to biology," Susan Smith from For Women Scotland told the BBC.

Beginnings of the culture wars

Over time the arguments over how a woman is defined had become increasingly angry, bitter and divided, because the stakes were high for all involved.

For transgender people, who say they often face victimisation and harassment, the battles were rooted in attempts to win better legal protection.

"Legal gender recognition is essential for trans people to enjoy the full spectrum of rights each of us is entitled to, including safety, health and family life," according to Sacha Deshmukh, the chief executive of Amnesty International UK.  The charity opposed For Women Scotland's case in the Supreme Court.

The question of how to achieve legal recognition rose to prominence in 2002 when two judgements at the European Court of Human Rights found the UK was breaching human rights by failing to legally recognise transgender people in their acquired gender.

This eventually led to the 2004 Gender Recognition Act, which allowed a trans person to apply for a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). This recognised their preferred gender rather than their biological sex, allowing official documents like birth certificates to be changed to reflect that.

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But it was a long-winded process requiring two doctors to sign it off and for the person to "live in their acquired gender" for at least two years. Only about 8,000 people have applied for a GRC since they came into being, according to government figures.

Campaigners began calling for the process to be simplified. In a response to a 2020 government consultation on amending the GRA, Stonewall, the LGBTQ+ rights organisation, called for a "move to a de-medicalised and straightforward legal gender recognition process".

Gradually these calls gained momentum.

In 2022, the Scottish government introduced a law that would allow people to "self-identify" in their desired gender. This was later blocked by the UK government and eventually dropped as a Scottish policy.

As the rights of trans people were being debated, women's groups started pushing back about what that meant for biological women.

The meaning of words like "woman" and "sex" took on new significance, if someone who was biologically male had a certificate that identified them as a woman for legal purposes.

Under the 2010 Equality Act, sex was a protected characteristic, and so was gender reassignment. With the very meaning of those categories in dispute, legal experts said it set the protections of one group against the protections of another.

The complexities mean courts and tribunals have frequently been called on to arbitrate.

And social media has often provided a starting point for angry disputes, connecting and amplifying voices, and in many cases, leading to more entrenched viewpoints. It had become a culture war.

How the debate began to change

In 2019, tax expert Maya Forstater lost her job because she tweeted that she did not believe people could change their sex. She said biological sex was immutable and not the same as gender identity.  

As a result, her work contract was not renewed. Her employer said it wanted to build an inclusive workplace.

She lost her case at an employment tribunal case, but an Appeal Court judge later ruled that gender critical beliefs were protected by the Equalities Act. In 2023, she was awarded £100,000 compensation for unfair dismissal.

It was a high-profile battle through tribunals and courts which put employers' policies on inclusion under the spotlight and raised questions about whether by protecting the rights of one group, another was being discriminated against.

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Ms Forstater went on to set up the campaign group Sex Matters, and was among those celebrating outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

There have been other similar cases brought against employers since then. Sex Matters lists 11 settled or ongoing cases on its website.

But other high-profile cases have also shaped the broader debate.

In March 2020, 23-year-old Keira Bell took legal action against the only children's NHS gender clinic, saying she should have been challenged more by medical staff over her decision to transition to a male whilst a teenager.

Although she eventually lost her case, it started a chain reaction, which led to a shake-up of gender services for children and young people.

And in 2021 the Sussex University professor, Kathleen Stock, quit her job after being accused of having transphobic views. She had published a book that questioned whether gender identity was more significant than biological sex.

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She denied being transphobic but was subjected to a student campaign to remove her from her post. The university was later fined for failing to uphold freedom of speech.

These and other cases put an uncomfortable spotlight on a debate that many preferred to ignore or dismiss as mainly happening on social media, because it was too tricky and using the wrong language could lead to abuse.

Yet fundamental questions were being raised about freedom of speech, how we treat each other and how you define a woman. The need for clarity had become overwhelming.

In terms of equality law, the Supreme Court ruling provided that.

For women's groups there is sheer relief that biological facts will now drive decisions.

But for many trans people there is distress. Even though they still have protections under the Equality Act, for many it does not feel like that. They worry that harassment will increase.

Activist Charlie Craggs, who is a trans woman, told the BBC it was really sad that this tiny community of less than 1% of the population was being "thrown under the bus".

Supreme Court ruling in practice

Crucially, the ruling provides a clear framework for what equality laws mean. The EHRC says it is "working at pace" to update its guidance, and expects that to be ready by the summer.

It has already made it clear that if a single-sex space, like a toilet or changing room, is women-only, that means biological males who identify as women should not use it.

It says instead that trans people should use their "powers of advocacy" to campaign for third spaces, such as unisex toilets.

And it has said it will pursue the NHS if it does not follow the latest ruling.

Health service guidance on single-sex wards currently says that "trans people should be accommodated according to their presentation, the way they dress, and the name and pronouns they currently use".

Currently this allows trans women to be offered beds on women-only wards.

The NHS says its policy is under review.

Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption says that while the ruling means organisations can exclude trans women from women only facilities, they are not necessarily obliged to do so.

He told Radio 4's PM programme that in sport, for example, it would be down to individual governing bodies to decide who is allowed to compete in women's sport.

"They could decide to allow trans women to compete on the same basis as biological women, some sporting authorities do, although I think that in light of the latest judgement, they would be wise to say so expressly in their rules," he said.

British Transport Police has been the first body to actually change its policies. It says strip searches of people in custody will be carried out by officers of the same biological sex

It means a trans woman would be searched by a male officer, and a police officer who is a trans woman would not be able to search a biological woman.

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The domestic violence charity Refuge says the ruling will not change the way it operates.

Its chief executive, Gemma Sherrington, says, "we remain firmly committed to supporting all survivors of domestic abuse, including trans women".

But for many businesses, sports clubs and other organisations it is too soon to know what this will mean in practice.

They will need to see the detailed guidance from the Equality Commission first. Until then it is difficult to know how much change, if any, they will need to make or what new issues might arise.

Some organisations will also have to decide whether they have the space and money to provide so-called third spaces or unisex facilities

For trans people there is also a lot of uncertainty. They will have been used to using spaces which correspond to their gender identity – changing that may be difficult and, for some, frightening.

The Equality Commission expects to publish its new statutory code of conduct by the summer. Only then will these questions begin to be answered.

A council said it has sold a former leisure centre site for less than its market value in order to keep a promise not to build student accommodation on it.

Plans have been agreed to sell the old Clifton Hill leisure centre site, in Exeter, to a company that builds affordable housing for older people.

Exeter City Council said the sale price of the site was just under £3.4m – below the market value of £3.8m.

Council leader Phil Bialyk said: "We could get £3.8m, or even more, if we broke our promise not to build student accommodation."

'We listened'

The council closed the leisure centre in 2018 and knocked it down in 2022, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Services (LDRS).

The two-acre site was originally sold to its in-house housing company Exeter City Living (ECL) for just over £2m.

It then bought it back last year for about £3m and the site went back on the market last August.

Planning permission had already been given for 41 homes on the site but none of the bidders wanted to take that on.

Preferred Homes came in with a plan for 72 units of affordable rented housing for older people.

The development would have a cafe, meeting rooms and a weekly doctors' surgery.

Homes will be made available to older Exeter residents on the housing register.

Councillor Duncan Wood said: "It is important that we listened to local communities, heard their reservations and acted accordingly."

He was remanded into custody and is due to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on Thursday.

He was previously found guilty of attempted murder and sentenced in October 2016.

A man has been charged with murder in connection with a crash in Staffordshire ten years ago.

Mohammed Aziz was hit by a car in Shobnall Street, Burton-on-Trent, on 20 July 2015.

The then 50-year-old, who was from the town, suffered extensive injuries and died in December 2022, Staffordshire Police said.

Nadeem Akhtar, 46, of Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent, was charged with murder and appeared at the North Staffordshire Justice Centre on Wednesday.

The mother of two toddlers attacked by the family dog told the BBC she was "so thankful" to neighbours who helped to save them.

The boys, aged two and three, are being treated for puncture wounds and lacerations to their arms and legs in hospital and having surgery to close and stitch their wounds.

The animal, a six-month-old American bulldog named Oakley, had reportedly never shown any signs of aggression until it attacked at about 16:00 BST on Thursday in the back garden of their home on Johnson Avenue, Prescot.

The boys' mother, who did not wish to be named, said they were expected to make a "full recovery" and have been their "normal cheeky selves" in hospital.

The BBC understands the children were playing in the garden when Oakley grabbed the older boy without warning.

As the adults in the house prised his jaws open to release the three-year-old, it turned and grabbed the younger boy before it was pulled away.

'We're not coping'

A neighbour managed to keep the dog from grabbing the boy's face and neck, before the children were moved safely inside.

Witnesses said the dog had been with the family since it was about eight or nine weeks old.

The mother thanked the neighbour who intervened, adding were it not for her "I might not have a son".

She said her older child had been asking about Oakley, who had been handed over to police to be put down.

"We're not coping," she said.

"Not only are we dealing with the two kids, we're also grieving for the family dog."

However, she said the children seemed to be dealing with the attack well.

"They're still the same kids, they're still their same cheeky, attitude-y little selves," she said.

"The way they are in themselves, you wouldn't know anything had happened, but of course it has."

Cn Insp Phil Thompson, from Merseyside Police, called the attack a "shocking incident".

"We are in the very early stages of investigating this incident and the dog has been seized at the home, he said.

"Enquiries are ongoing to establish the breed of the dog and identify the owner."

The jury in the trial of two police officers accused of using excessive force against a 92-year-old amputee have begun their deliberations.

PCs Stephen Smith, 51, and Rachel Comotto, 36, have denied using excessive force on Donald Burgess at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex.

The care home called 999 in June 2022 after Mr Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair user, reportedly grabbed a knife and threatened to stab staff.

Mr Burgess was taken to hospital where he contracted Covid and died 22 days later, aged 93, but the officers are not being held responsible for his death.

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Judge Christopher Hehir, summarising the evidence on at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday, told jurors: "The reason for his behaviour that day, we now know, is that he was delirious as a result of a urinary tract infection."

PC Smith sprayed synthetic Pava pepper spray into Mr Burgess's face and struck his wrist with a baton, with PC Comotto deploying her Taser, all within a minute and 23 seconds of entering the pensioner's room, the court was told.

PC Smith denies two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm for his use of Pava spray and for using a baton, while PC Comotto denies one count related to her use of a Taser on Mr Burgess.

Judge Hehirsaid jurors should reach their decision "with their heads, not their hearts".

Crown Prosecution Service

Prosecutors claim the force used against Mr Burgess, who had been reportedly waving a serrated cutlery knife around and telling staff he would "take pleasure" in murdering them, was "unjustified and unlawful" given his age and physical condition.

PC Smith previously told jurors he did not see that Mr Burgess was disabled and using a wheelchair as he was focused on the knife the pensioner was holding in his hand.

During his evidence, he denied emptying a full can of Pava in Mr Burgess's face, saying it was "a short burst".

He also denied hitting Mr Burgess with a baton, claiming he instead flicked the baton towards the pensioner's wrist to "knock the knife out" of his hand.

During her evidence, PC Comotto said she believed using the Taser was the safest way to "protect" Mr Burgess as she feared her colleague using the baton again would cause more harm.

"I'm not a trigger-happy officer," she told jurors.

"It's the first time I've fired my Taser."