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Each self-inflicted death where the victim had experienced domestic violence should be considered a potential homicide, as per demands from advocates who aim to hold abusers responsible for the catastrophic consequences of their actions.

This move is essential because law enforcement are not doing enough to bring perpetrators to justice in cases of self-inflicted death following family violence.

“In case after case, there is systemic and structural failure, particularly within the criminal justice system, to examine these fatalities with the seriousness they deserve,” remarked a co-director of a campaign group during a landmark gathering in Westminster earlier this week.

The meeting, organized by a organization running a “Suicide is Homicide” campaign to fight for change in the criminal justice system, united families who had lost loved ones to suicide after domestic abuse.

Personal Stories of Tragedy

Sharon Holland experienced the death of her child Chloe Holland in March 2023. Before her death, the young woman had reported her former partner to authorities, providing a two-hour video interview as proof about his conduct.

After her death, the individual was convicted of manipulative and domineering conduct and imprisoned for over three years. He was subsequently sentenced for an additional term after a another victim came forward to report that she had been in a harmful partnership with him.

After Chloe’s death, the mother chose to advocate for a new law to bring perpetrators accountable; yet she then realized that regulations were already in place, they just were rarely applied to secure prosecutions.

“I concluded it wasn’t a fresh legislation I needed as existing laws were in place, and after learning how much my child had been let down before her death by the police and numerous services, they had to fulfill their duties, and practices needed to change,” she explained.

“More than four dozen relatives have found me and just a handful of us have had a guilty verdict,” she added. “I was astonished to see such a large number who have been fighting the police and CPS for years and receiving no resolution for their child or sibling and could not speak out in case it affected investigations that weren’t possibly going anywhere.”

Further Heartbreaking Account

Saskia Lightburn Richie’s daughter her 30-year-old daughter died in May 2017, in what she described as “the ultimate abusive action” in a campaign of abuse.

“Hannah was vibrant, she was loving,” she said. “She had great potential, and she was an exceptional, deeply devoted mother to her two children, and she died by suicide after 24 months in a partnership where she was methodically broken down by her partner,” she explained.

“She endured physical assaults, she was psychologically tortured, she was controlled and broken down gradually until she could not see a way forward. The individual who did this to her walked free, because we call it suicide, we conclude the case and we proceed.

“But I could not move on,” she remarked, “and I have not managed to move on. Honestly, Hannah did not merely take her own life. She was killed. Her death was gradual and deliberately over a 24-month span, and when I went to the police, when I begged them to investigate what he had done to her, I was informed that there was nothing that they could do.

“There was no investigation into her passing. The domestic homicide review, which I had to fight for, took five years and had no impact. A four day inquest found death by suicide, notwithstanding huge evidence over a extremely distressing multi-day session of family violence and failings by various agencies.”

The parent told the meeting that for a decade she has “struggled against a establishment that refuses to see what is obvious”.

She said the suicide is homicide campaign was vital “because when an individual takes their own life after they’ve suffered domestic abuse, we have to examine it for what it truly represents, which is murder.

“We must apply the laws we currently have effectively and it is not occurring at the moment, and we need to hold abusers accountable for pushing their targets to suicide.

“We have the laws. We require determination, we need police to investigate properly. We need the prosecution authority to prosecute. We need judges to recognize that verbal abuse and manipulation can cause death just as much as physical force and arms.”

Political Response

At a second meeting in the House of Commons, chaired by a opposition politician, and including the government official, the grieving families again told their stories.

A junior minister informed the assembly: “These deaths are often dismissed as if they were their own choice, they opted for this, when, reality, these were the result of actually, another person’s abuse, and these aren’t isolated stories.”

“The legal system is flawed, we are aware,” she stated. “Particularly around murder or unlawful killing, it is fragmented. It lacks statutory basis regardless, it has been shaped with common law practices for generations, and it is outdated, honestly, it’s the world we currently live in.

“I’m not going to pretend that it’s going to be easy to resolve. It is incredibly complex and difficult, particularly when you consider the issue of homicide, but we recognize that it needs to be looked at.”

Prosecution Service Statement

A spokesperson for the prosecution service commented: “Family violence is a terrible crime and our prosecutors are regularly instructed to evaluate murder and manslaughter charges in self-inflicted death instances where there is a established background of domestic abuse or other manipulative conduct.

“We have previously charged a several individuals for causing the death of a partner they abused, encompassing in proceedings which are currently active.

“We are also working with police and other stakeholders to guarantee these types of crimes are well-understood – so that we can hold offenders accountable for the complete scope of their crimes.”