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Every suicide in which the deceased had endured domestic violence should be treated as a possible murder case, according to demands from advocates who aim to hold abusers accountable for the devastating consequences of their actions.

This move is necessary because police and prosecutors are not doing enough to hold offenders accountable in cases of self-inflicted death after domestic abuse.

“Time and again, there is widespread breakdown, particularly within the legal system, to examine these deaths with the seriousness they deserve,” stated a leader of a campaign group during a landmark gathering in Westminster earlier this week.

The meeting, arranged by a organization leading a “Self-Inflicted Death is Murder” initiative to fight for change in the criminal justice system, brought together relatives who had suffered bereavement to self-inflicted death following family violence.

Personal Stories of Tragedy

Sharon Holland lost her daughter her 23-year-old daughter in spring 2023. Before her death, the young woman had reported her ex-boyfriend to authorities, providing a two-hour video interview as evidence about his conduct.

After her death, the individual was found guilty of manipulative and domineering conduct and imprisoned for over three years. He was later jailed for an additional term after a second woman came forward to report that she had been in a violent and abusive relationship with him.

After Chloe’s death, the mother chose to advocate for a new law to bring perpetrators accountable; however she then realized that laws were already in place, they just weren’t often being used to achieve convictions.

“I decided it was not a new law I required as current statutes were already there, and after finding out how much my daughter had been failed before her taking her life by the authorities and many other agencies, they had to do their job properly, and practices needed to change,” she explained.

“More than four dozen relatives have found me and only four of us have had a guilty verdict,” she added. “I was so shocked to see such a large number who have been battling the police and CPS for a long time and receiving no resolution for their child or brother or sister and didn’t have a voice in case it impacted inquiries that were not progressing.”

Further Heartbreaking Account

Saskia Lightburn Richie’s child Hannah died in spring 2017, in what she described as “the final act of violence” in a prolonged pattern of mistreatment.

“She was vibrant, she was caring,” she said. “She was full of promise, and she was an amazing, really loving mother to her kids, and she died by suicide after 24 months in a partnership where she was systematically destroyed by her companion,” she explained.

“She was physically beaten, she was mentally tormented, she was controlled and broken down piece by piece until she could not see a path ahead. The individual who caused this walked free, because we call it self-inflicted death, we conclude the case and we move on.

“Yet I was unable to continue,” she said, “and I have not managed to move on. In truth, Hannah did not merely take her own life. She was murdered. Her death was gradual and deliberately over a two year period, and when I went to the police, when I pleaded with them to investigate what he had inflicted upon her, I was told that there was nothing that they could do.

“No inquiry was conducted into her death. The domestic homicide review, which I had to fight for, required five years and changed nothing. A lengthy coroner’s hearing found self-inflicted death, despite huge evidence over a extremely distressing multi-day session of family violence and failings by multiple services.”

The parent told the meeting that for eight years she has “been fighting a system that ignores what is obvious”.

She emphasized the suicide is homicide movement was vital “since when someone dies by suicide after they’ve endured domestic abuse, we have to investigate it for what it truly represents, which is homicide.

“We must apply the laws we already possess properly and it is not occurring at the present, and we need to hold abusers accountable for pushing their targets to suicide.

“We have the laws. We need the will, we need police to conduct thorough inquiries. We need the prosecution authority to prosecute. We need the judiciary to recognize that words and control can kill equally to physical force and arms.”

Political Response

At a follow-up gathering in the House of Commons, chaired by a Labour MP, and attended by the safeguarding minister, the grieving families again told their stories.

A junior minister told the meeting: “These deaths are often dismissed as if they were their decision, they chose to do this, when, reality, these were the result of in fact, another person’s abuse, and these aren’t isolated stories.”

“Our law is broken, we know that,” she said. “Especially around homicide or manslaughter, it is fragmented. It lacks statutory basis regardless, it has been shaped with common law practices for generations, and it is no longer fit for purpose, quite frankly, given the society we currently live in.

“I’m not going to pretend that it’s going to be simple to fix. It is extremely complicated and difficult, especially when you consider the issue of homicide, but we acknowledge that it requires examination.”

Legal Authority Comment

A spokesperson for the legal body said: “Domestic abuse is a terrible offense and our legal officers are actively advised to evaluate homicide allegations in suicide cases where there is a established background of family violence or other manipulative conduct.

“We have previously charged a several individuals for leading to the fatality of a partner they abused, encompassing in cases which are ongoing.

“We are collaborating with police and other parties to guarantee these kinds of offences are clearly recognized – so that we can bring perpetrators to justice for the complete scope of their wrongdoings.”