Stab family believe 'PPS failing'

Thomas Devlin was stabbed to death

The family of a murdered Belfast teenager have said the Public Prosecution Service is failing the people of Northern Ireland.

Thomas Devlin was stabbed to death close to his north Belfast home in August 2005.

His mother, Penny Holloway, said the PPS should be tougher on knife crime.

Ms Holloway said it needed to follow the English system where everyone involved in a murder would be held responsible for it.

"A joint enterprise is where all of those people involved in an incident, such as a murder, would all be held responsible for the outcome of that," she said.

"We have seen the Crown Prosecution Service take a very robust approach on this and they have secured convictions on quite a few cases, particularly in respect of knife crime where people have been murdered.

"One person may have stabbed someone, but all those present would have been charged with murder or manslaughter."