Responsible Child is on Netflix and the harrowing film is based on a true story involving a real murder case.
The drama, which originally aired on the BBC back in 2019, follows a 12-year-old boy accused of killing his mother’s boyfriend.
The film is based on the 2014 case of Jerome Ellis and his brother Joshua, accused of murdering their stepfather in a knife attack.
Jerome was just 14 years old and his brother Joshua 23 when they stabbed Neil Tulley to death more than 60 times.
He had been “asleep or nearly asleep” on the sofa during the attack, which almost left him beheaded.
Both had denied murder but admitted manslaughter at Guildford Crown Court.
Joshua was convicted of murder and Jerome was found guilty of manslaughter on grounds of loss of control.
The brothers stated Mr Tulley, who was in a relationship with their mother Marie, had threatened to kill Joshua a year earlier.
He had been arrested and charged with making threats to kill but was acquitted.
The siblings had a complicated and dysfunctional family background and after Mr Tulley’s acquittal, relationships in the home deteriorated further.
Both brothers were armed with kitchen knives when they stabbed Mr Tulley to death.
They went on the run following the incident but were found by a member of the public.
At the time, Joshua told police he had been scared about what Mr Tulley would do to the family and the brothers could not take the abuse any longer.
The judge said it was a “tragic case” adding that Jerome had been neglected and was living in an abusive environment.
Jerome was sentenced to six years’ detention, while Joshua was sentenced to a minimum of 14 years behind bars.
This means Jerome is now a free man and it is believed he is living under a new identity. As for Joshua, he is still serving his sentence.
Responsible Child is on Netflix
