‘Not having his picture out there gives him some sort of protection and anonymity still’

The mum of murdered teenager Mason Rist has accused the authorities of ‘protecting’ one of their killers by refusing to release a photograph of him in custody.

Nikki Knight has criticised a decision by Avon & Somerset police not to release the custody image of Finley Davis, who was one of the four teenagers jailed for life in 2024 for the murders of Mason, and his best friend Max Dixon, in Knowle West.

Bristol Live was the first media publication to release the name of Finley Davis earlier this week after reporting restrictions banning his name being known lapsed when he turned 18.

But when Bristol Live asked Avon & Somerset police for a copy of the custody image taken when he was first arrested, the police declined, saying they only released images if they were contemporaneous to the case.

That move has been criticised by Nikki Knight, Mason’s mum. She said she was ‘appalled’ at the decision, which she felt gave ‘additional protection’ to him that wasn’t afforded to the victims.

“Not having his picture out there gives him some sort of protection and anonymity still,” she said.

“If that is the law then the law needs to be changed. I am sure Davis loves that but I don’t understand why he is still being protected now.

Mason, 15, with his mother Nikki Knight and his cousin.(Image: Nikki Knight / SWNS)

“The judge said he would be allowed to be named when he turned 18, But they still don’t want to give out his picture. My message to the authorities is, why? The judge never said this couldn’t happen,” she added.

Nikki said she was pleased Bristol Live had taken the decision to publish his name, but said it should have been released as soon as he was found guilty.

All the four teenagers were under 18 at the time they attacked and killed Max and Mason in January 2024. By the time the case got to trial in the autumn of 2024, the eldest of the teens, Riley Tolliver, had turned 18 and was named at the start of the trial, but the three youngest defendants were still the subject of a court order banning their names from being published.

When all four were found guilty of both murders, media organisations applied to the judge in the case to drop the restrictions on naming the other three and, in a lengthy ruling, the judge decided to allow the second oldest, Kodi Wescott – the only attacker who stabbed both Max and Mason – could be named as he was 17 and soon to turn 18 anyway.

But she ruled that the restrictions on naming Finley Davis and the youngest of the four teens had to remain in place until they were 18, to better help their rehabilitation.

Nikki said: “It’s good his name is released but they should have all been named anyway at the time. The judge made the order so we had to abide by it.

Mason Rist

“But now he is 18, we also need to see his face. The public has a right to know who these murderers really are.

“I was angry they weren’t named at the time. We all know some judges do and some don’t. But I think all judges should work the same. You either name them or you don’t. The James Bulger killers were identified – and they were just 10 years of age. I’ve always been angry about that.

“They should not have any protection. Victims of murder don’t get protected. They have no human rights. So why should the people who did it get protection?

“The victims are named. Everyone knew my son straight away and he was only 15. Yet his murderers who were the same age are given more protection than he ever was.

“Mason never got protected. That should be for all victims. Yet all the other authorities seem more concerned about protecting cold-blooded killers,” she added.

Avon & Somerset police declined Bristol Live’s request for Finley Davis’ image. “Custody images can only be shared contemporaneously of a court case – within a news cycle or, in policing, this is a week since the conclusion of a trial or sentencing,” a police spokesperson said.

“Given the significant amount of time that has passed, it would not be contemporaneous for us to release the image,” she added.