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Every suicide in which the deceased had endured domestic violence must be treated as a possible murder case, as per calls from advocates who seek to make perpetrators responsible for the catastrophic impact of their behavior.

This step is necessary because law enforcement are failing to hold offenders to justice in cases of self-inflicted death after family violence.

“Time and again, there is widespread breakdown, particularly within the criminal justice system, to examine these deaths with the seriousness they deserve,” stated a leader of a campaign group during a significant gathering in Westminster recently.

The assembly, arranged by a organization leading a “Self-Inflicted Death is Murder” campaign to fight for change in the legal framework, brought together families who had suffered bereavement to self-inflicted death following family violence.

Personal Stories of Tragedy

Sharon Holland lost her daughter Chloe Holland in spring 2023. Prior to her passing, Chloe had informed her ex-boyfriend to authorities, providing a two-hour video interview as proof about his conduct.

After her death, the perpetrator was found guilty of coercive and controlling behavior and jailed for over three years. He was later sentenced for an additional term after a another victim stepped up to report that she had been in a harmful partnership with him.

In the wake of her loss, the parent decided to campaign for a new law to hold offenders to justice; however she then discovered that regulations were already in place, they just were rarely applied to achieve convictions.

“I decided it wasn’t a fresh legislation I needed as existing laws were already there, and after finding out how much my daughter had been failed before her death by the police and numerous services, they needed to fulfill their duties, and things needed to change,” she said.

“Over 47 families have contacted me and just a handful of us have had a guilty verdict,” she continued. “I was so shocked to see such a large number who have been battling the authorities and prosecution service for years and getting no justice for their child or sibling and could not speak out in case it impacted inquiries that were not progressing.”

Another Tragic Case

One mother’s child Hannah died in May 2017, in what she called “the final act of violence” in a campaign of abuse.

“She 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 relationship where she was methodically broken down by her partner,” she said.

“She endured physical assaults, she was psychologically tortured, she was dominated and dismantled gradually until she was unable to envision a way forward. The man who did this to her walked free, because we label it self-inflicted death, we conclude the case and we proceed.

“But I could not move on,” she remarked, “and I haven’t been able to let go. Honestly, Hannah did not merely take her own life. She was killed. Her death was gradual and intentionally over a 24-month span, and when I approached the authorities, when I pleaded with them to look into what he had done to her, I was told that there was nothing that they could do.

“There was no investigation into her death. The domestic homicide review, which I had to struggle to obtain, took five years and had no impact. A lengthy coroner’s hearing determined self-inflicted death, notwithstanding huge evidence over a very traumatic four day period of domestic abuse and shortcomings by multiple services.”

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

She emphasized the self-inflicted death is murder campaign was vital “because when someone dies by suicide after they’ve suffered family violence, we have to investigate it for what it truly represents, which is homicide.

“We need to apply the laws we currently have effectively and it really isn’t happening at the moment, and we need to hold abusers accountable for pushing their targets to suicide.

“The statutes exist. We need the will, we need police to conduct thorough inquiries. We need the prosecution authority to take legal action. We need judges to understand that verbal abuse and manipulation can kill equally to physical force and arms.”

Political Response

At a second meeting in the Parliament, led 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 know that,” she said. “Particularly around murder or manslaughter, it is fragmented. It lacks statutory basis anyway, it has been shaped with traditional legal customs for generations, and it is outdated, quite frankly, it’s the world we currently live in.

“I will not claim that it’s going to be easy to resolve. It is incredibly complex and difficult, particularly when you consider the matter of murder, but we acknowledge that it requires examination.”

Legal Authority Comment

A spokesperson for the prosecution service said: “Domestic abuse is a terrible crime and our prosecutors are actively advised to consider murder and manslaughter charges in suicide cases where there is a known context of family violence or other controlling or coercive behavior.

“We have previously charged a several individuals for causing the death of a companion they mistreated, encompassing in proceedings which are ongoing.

“We are collaborating with police and other stakeholders to guarantee these kinds of offences are clearly recognized – so that we can bring perpetrators accountable for the full extent of their crimes.”