Archie Battersbee's family given right to appeal over ruling that life support should end

20 June 2022, 15:37 | Updated: 20 June 2022, 16:34

The parents of a 12-year-old boy at the centre of a life-support treatment dispute have been given the go-ahead to take the case to the Court of Appeal after a High Court judge concluded that the youngster was dead.

Mrs Justice Arbuthnot recently ruled that doctors could lawfully stop providing treatment to Archie Battersbee after considering evidence at a trial in the Family Division of the High Court in London.

Archie suffered brain damage in an incident at home earlier in the year, with his mum finding him unconscious with a ligature over his head on April 7.

It is believed he might have been taking part in an online challenge.

Archie's parents, Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee, from Southend, Essex, want Court of Appeal judges to consider the case.

He has not regained consciousness since the incident but his family say his heart is still beating and want treatment to continue.

Read more: Mum of Archie Battersbee, 12, vows to fight on after judge rules life support should end

Read more: 'He won't give up': Archie Battersbee's mum vows to fight ruling to end son's life

Archie Battersbee's mum hits out at judge's decision

Mrs Justice Arbuthnot on Monday gave Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee permission to take the case to the Court of Appeal.

She said there was a "compelling reason" why appeal judges should consider the case.

It came after she previously ruled that: "Archie died at noon on May 31 2022, which was shortly after the MRI scans taken that day.

A barrister leading Archie's parents' legal team argued that evidence had not shown "beyond reasonable doubt" that the youngster was dead.

Edward Devereux QC said the decision had been made on a balance of probabilities.

He argued that a decision of such "gravity" should have been made on a "beyond reasonable doubt" basis.

Mrs Justice Arbuthnot decided that appeal judges should consider that standard of proof issue.

She said Court of Appeal judges had never considered that standard of proof issue in relation to "declaration of death" cases.

Doctors treating Archie at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, told Mrs Justice Arbuthnot they think the youngster is "brain-stem dead".

They say treatment should end and think Archie should be disconnected from a ventilator.

Archie Battersbee's mum accuses hospital of neglect

The family is being supported by a campaign organisation called the Christian Legal Centre.

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the centre said after Mrs Justice Arbuthnot's appeal decision: "A ruling that says death can be declared on the balance of probabilities sets a troubling precedent for our society and must be appealed.

"This case is the first of its kind in an English court and has raised significant moral, legal and medical questions as to when a person is dead.

"Archie's parents believe that the time and manner of his death should be determined by God and claim a right to pray for a miracle until and unless that happens. That belief must be respected.

"The ideology of 'dignity in death', meaning a planned time of death as fixed and carried out by the doctors, should not be brutally imposed on families who do not believe in it.

"We will continue to stand with the family as they appeal the ruling and continue to pray for a miracle."