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Each self-inflicted death where the deceased had experienced domestic violence should be considered a possible murder case, as per calls from campaigners who aim to make perpetrators accountable for the devastating consequences of their actions.

This step is necessary because police and prosecutors are not doing enough to bring perpetrators accountable in instances of suicide after family violence.

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

The meeting, organized by a organization running a “Self-Inflicted Death is Murder” initiative to advocate for reform in the legal framework, united relatives who had lost loved ones to self-inflicted death following domestic abuse.

Personal Stories of Loss

One mother experienced the death of her child her 23-year-old daughter in spring 2023. Before her death, the young woman had reported her former partner to authorities, submitting a two-hour video interview as proof about his conduct.

After her death, the perpetrator was found guilty of manipulative and domineering conduct and imprisoned for over three years. He was later sentenced for three years and seven months 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 legal change to bring perpetrators to justice; however she then discovered that laws were existing, they just weren’t often being used to achieve convictions.

“I decided it was not a fresh legislation I needed as existing laws were in place, and after learning how much my daughter had been let down previous to her taking her life by the police and many other agencies, they had to do their job properly, and things required reform,” she explained.

“More than four dozen relatives have found me and only four of us have had a conviction,” she continued. “I was astonished to see so many families who have been battling the authorities and CPS for years and receiving no resolution for their child or sibling and could not speak out in case it impacted inquiries that weren’t possibly going anywhere.”

Another Tragic Case

Saskia Lightburn Richie’s daughter her 30-year-old daughter passed away in May 2017, in what she called “the ultimate abusive action” in a prolonged pattern of mistreatment.

“Hannah was vibrant, she was loving,” she stated. “She was full of promise, and she was an exceptional, really loving mother to her kids, and she died by suicide after two years in a partnership where she was systematically destroyed by her companion,” she said.

“She endured physical assaults, she was mentally tormented, she was dominated and broken down piece by piece until she could not see a way forward. The man who did this to her went unpunished, because we label it self-inflicted death, we conclude the case and we move on.

“Yet I was unable to continue,” she remarked, “and I haven’t been able to let go. In truth, she didn’t just die by suicide. She was killed. Her death was gradual and intentionally over a two year period, and when I went to the police, when I begged them to look into what he had done to her, I was informed that there was no action that they were able to take.

“There was no investigation into her passing. The domestic homicide review, which I had to struggle to obtain, took five years and had no impact. A four day inquest determined death by suicide, notwithstanding substantial proof over a extremely distressing multi-day session of domestic abuse and shortcomings by various agencies.”

The parent informed the gathering that for a decade she has “struggled against a system that ignores what is obvious”.

She emphasized the self-inflicted death is murder movement was critical “since when an individual dies by suicide after they’ve suffered domestic abuse, we have to investigate it for what it really is, which is homicide.

“We need to use the legislation 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 need the will, we need law enforcement to conduct thorough inquiries. We need the Crown Prosecution Service to prosecute. We need judges to recognize that words and control can kill just as much as physical force and arms.”

Political Response

At a second meeting in the Parliament, led by a opposition politician, and including the government official, the bereaved relatives again shared their experiences.

A parliamentary under-secretary informed the assembly: “Such fatalities are often dismissed as if they were their decision, they chose to do this, when, in truth, these were the culmination of actually, somebody else’s violence, and these are not isolated stories.”

“The legal system is flawed, we know that,” she stated. “Especially around homicide or manslaughter, it is fragmented. It’s not written in statute anyway, it has been developed with traditional legal customs for centuries, and it is no longer fit for purpose, honestly, given the society we inhabit today.

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

Legal Authority Comment

A spokesperson for the legal body said: “Domestic abuse is a heinous crime and our legal officers are actively advised to consider homicide allegations in self-inflicted death instances where there is a established background of domestic abuse or other controlling or coercive behavior.

“We have previously charged a number of defendants for causing the death of a partner they mistreated, encompassing in proceedings which are ongoing.

“We are also working with police and other parties to guarantee these kinds of offences are well-understood – so that we can bring perpetrators to justice for the complete scope of their wrongdoings.”