The woman who attacked and killed schoolgirl Emily Jones in a Bolton park on Mother's Day could see her sentence reduced.
Eltiona Skana was handed a life sentence with a minimum of ten years and eight months, along with a hospital order which means she will not be sent to prison until doctors deem her fit.
The 31-year-old pleaded guilty to manslaughter by means of diminished responsibility after a court heard she sat in wait on a bench in Queens Park, Bolton, on March 22, 2020.
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As Emily passed on her scooter, Skana - who suffers from severe paranoid schizophrenia - quickly rose and grabbed the youngster, fatally cutting her across the neck with a craft knife she had bought earlier in the day.
Now, after being granted leave to appeal in August last year, Skana will have chance to plead her case before the Court of Appeal on February 2.
Passing his sentence on Skana, Judge Mr Justice Wall told her she would be detained in a secure hospital until 'no longer necessary' and that if she was ever released from hospital she would go straight to prison to serve her term.
In a victim impact statement read in court Emily's dad Mark Jones described his daughter as a 'kind child' who was 'bright and funny'.
He added: "Emily was a vulnerable child full of innocence and wonder, she was just starting off on her path of life and her future was cut short.
"Our future has also been taken away. How can we enjoy life when the best part of it has been taken away?"
Skana pleaded guilty to manslaughter but was found not guilty of murdering Emily, after prosecutors dropped the charge.
