Archie Battersbee's Parents To File Last Minute Application To European Court Of Human Rights
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Archie Battersbee's parents have said they will submit a last-minute application to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in an attempt to postpone the withdrawal of his life-sustaining treatment.
The 12-year-old has been on life support since April, with the treatment set to be withdrawn later today (3 August) after an appeal to continue treatment was refused by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
However, Archie's mother Hollie Dance has said that her legal team will need to make the latest court case by 9am BST in order to be considered.
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She said: "Our solicitors will be filing to the European Court of Human Rights. They've been given a strict timeline of 09:00. Again, no time whatsoever.
"Every single court case we've had we've had no time at all, one or two days to prepare and get the whole case together."
Archie's mum has also told Sky News that doctors in Japan and Turkey have reached out to her with the hope of medical interventions which will help Archie recover.
She is now considering options that involve treating him outside of the UK.
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Doctors had previously said they would withdraw the 12-year-old's treatment by 12pm on Tuesday (2 August), but Archie's parents filed a last-minute appeal to the Supreme Court in an attempt to give their son more time to recover.
Dance found her son unconscious at their home in Southend, Essex in April, with the belief that he may have been taking part in an online challenge.
After suffering traumatic brain injuries on 7 April, the child has not regained consciousness.
Since arriving at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, he has relied on medical ventilation. A High Court judge ruled last month that he should be allowed to die.
Archie’s mum and dad Paul Battersbee - have continued to fight the ruling, arguing that it breaches Articles 10 and 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, as well as Article 6 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Children.
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Sir Andrew McFarlane, sitting with two other judges, explained the court's decision as he said: “Every day that [Archie] continues to be given life-sustaining treatment is against his best interests.
"I concluded that there should be no stay other than a short stay for the parents to take stock and consider whether they want to make any further application to the supreme court.”
Last month, Mrs Justice Arbuthnot ruled that Archie 'died at noon on May 31st 2022, which was shortly after the MRI scans taken that day'.
The judge said: "I find that irreversible cessation of brain stem function has been conclusively established.
"I give permission to the medical professionals at the Royal London Hospital to cease to ventilate mechanically Archie Battersbee."
In response to the ruling, Ms Dance vowed to appeal the ruling and said at the time: "I am devastated and extremely disappointed by the judge's ruling after weeks of fighting a legal battle when I wanted to be at my little boy's bedside.
"Basing this judgment on an MRI test and that he is 'likely' to be dead, is not good enough. "
