Schoolgirl killer's appeal fails

Charlotte was stabbed after a "petty" argument

A teenager who stabbed a schoolgirl to death at a birthday party in east London has been refused the right to challenge her murder conviction.

But the High Court judges gave Beatriz Martins-Paes permission to appeal over her minimum sentence of 14 years.

The 18-year-old from Brentwood in Essex was sentenced at the Old Bailey last March for murdering Charlotte Polius.

She had accepted she was guilty of manslaughter but denied she had meant to cause Charlotte serious bodily harm.

Charlotte, 15, was killed in April 2005 when she was stabbed in the neck after an argument at a house party.

Two knives

After a trial Martins-Paes was found guilty of murder in March 2006 and detained at Her Majesty's pleasure with a minimum term of 14 years.

Her application for leave to appeal against the conviction was rejected by Lord Justice Dyson and two other judges on Monday.

However, they said in their judgment the "correct sentence to have passed in all the circumstances was 12 years" and gave her the right to appeal against her sentence.

Martins-Paes used one of two knives she was carrying at the party to stab Charlotte after an incident on the dance floor.