Friends and relatives of footballer Ryan Passey, who was fatally stabbed at Chicago's in Stourbridge, have launched a charity appeal to continue their fight for justice after the teenager accused of murdering him walked free from court.

19 year-old Kobe Murray of The Broadway, Dudley, pleaded self defence in relation to the death of 24-year-old Ryan from Quarry Bank, at the town centre nightspot last August.  

The verdict, which saw Murray cleared of both murder and manslaughter, prompted Stourbridge MP Margot James to write to the Solicitor General about the case.

Jason Connan, a spokesman for Ryan’s family said the jury’s failure to deliver any sentence sends out a very dangerous message at a time when knife crime is on the increase throughout the UK.