Jenny’s story
“The Court has given my abusive ex-partner power over me again”: the Court of Appeal refuses the appeal of Jenny, an abuse survivor
“The hardest thing is to say ‘I’m being abused’. I wanted someone to help me without having to say that.”
‘Jenny’, who we can’t name for legal reasons, was convicted of harming her baby in 2016 and was given a ten-year extended sentence for the crime which was later reduced on appeal.
Five years later, Jenny and her team at APPEAL submitted fresh evidence to the court to show that her conviction was unsafe. Jenny had completed a full sentence in prison; life as she once knew it had already been broken apart. She was simply fiercely determined to clear her name. In a regressive judgment, the Court of Appeal accepted the fresh evidence but upheld her conviction.
THE CASE
The Crown's case at trial was that Jenny, in the course of an argument with her ex-partner, threw the baby forcefully on the ground, causing him serious injury. At the time of trial, she maintained that she had dropped the baby by accident after catching her cardigan. The medical evidence in the case contradicted this and she was convicted. Her ex-partner was acquitted.
The truth? The injuries suffered by the baby were the direct result of being punched in the face by her partner whilst she was holding her son. Upon being punched, she fell to the floor and lost her hold of the baby.
domestic abuse and coercive control
Jenny was in an extremely abusive and violent relationship with her ex-partner, a fact she only disclosed once she was already in prison. The extent of the abuse and coercive control she suffered was so severe, that it prevented her from providing accurate instructions to her legal representatives and properly presenting her case at trial. Diagnosed with PTSD in custody, and meeting other survivors in prison, Jenny finally felt safe and able to disclose the trauma she had been through.
“The judges have agreed with what he always told me: that no one will believe me, that I’m crazy, that I should remain silent. I feel like I am no longer a survivor of domestic abuse but once again, a victim.”
APPEAL’s investigation obtained police and medical records that substantiate Jenny’s claims, revealing a horrific history of abuse at the hands of her ex, as well as contemporaneous evidence that she was punched on the night in question. Taken to A&E upon her arrest, she was diagnosed with ‘post-concussion syndrome’, and witnesses heard her shouting “you hit me” at her ex-partner. Not questioned outside of the earshot of this violent man, Jenny didn’t feel she could disclose what had really happened, and eventually went along with his version of events.
His controlling behaviour continued after her arrest, with him monitoring her movements and driving her to and from the trial. The abuse continued and Jenny’s family and children were threatened.
“She described one of the worst histories of domestic violence I have ever heard.”
THE JUDGMENT
On 30 November, Jenny received the devastating news that the Court of Appeal refused her permission to appeal her conviction.
In a ruling that marks a significant climb-down on the so far increasing judicial recognition of the relevance of coercive control and domestic violence in the criminal justice context, Lady Justice Macur, Mr Justice Jay and Mr Justice Murray wrote that despite “accept[ing] that there is ample independent evidence of domestic violence having occurred within the relationship” and “that the applicant was punched,” they concluded that, “In these circumstances we are not satisfied that it is either expedient or necessary in the interests of justice to admit the fresh evidence upon which the applicant purports to rely.”
Jenny told us:
“I’m in shock. The Court has given my abusive ex-partner power over me again. The judges have agreed with what he always told me: that no one will believe me, that I’m crazy, that I should remain silent. I feel like I am no longer a survivor of domestic abuse but once again, a victim.”
We are deeply troubled by the decision and see it as a major step backwards for women’s rights. The Court has demonstrated a lack of understanding of coercive control and delayed reporting. We fear that this decision will send a clear message to survivors of domestic violence who have been coerced into silence: the criminal justice system will not protect them.
“The Court of Appeal has not only slammed the door on Jenny but has risked silencing other women who have been wrongly convicted because they were too afraid to speak up about abuse.”
Jenny, with APPEAL’s Naima. Photo: Craig Hibbert
DELAYED REPORTING
According to a 2017 report, BME women on average suffer domestic abuse for approximately 8 years before disclosing abuse and/or seeking support, versus the national average of 2.3 years. As the first known case to deal with these issues, it was a missed opportunity for the judiciary progress its understanding and analysis in this area.
APPEAL will continue raising awareness of the reasons for delayed reporting in Parliament and push for better training and more effective safeguards to prevent miscarriages of justice like Jenny’s happening in the future.
Jenny with some of the APPEAL team outside the Court of Appeal on the day of her hearing
Send Jenny a message of support
Help win justice for Jenny
A donation to APPEAL also helps achieve justice for people like Jenny and helps us to ensure survivors of abuse are recognised and protected in Britain's justice system.
Photo: Craig Hibbert
If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse, please reach out to the 24 hour National Domestic Abuse freephone, on 0808 2000 247, or contact Women’s Aid. In an emergency, call 999.