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Each self-inflicted death in which the deceased had endured domestic violence must be treated as a potential homicide, as per demands from advocates who seek to hold abusers responsible for the devastating consequences of their behavior.

This move is essential because police and prosecutors are failing to bring perpetrators to justice in instances of self-inflicted death after family violence.

“Time and again, there is widespread breakdown, especially 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 London earlier this week.

The meeting, arranged by a group running a “Self-Inflicted Death is Murder” campaign to advocate for change in the legal framework, united relatives who had suffered bereavement to self-inflicted death after family violence.

Personal Stories of Tragedy

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

After her death, the individual was convicted of manipulative and domineering conduct and jailed for 41 months. He was later sentenced for three years and seven months after a another victim came forward to report that she had been in a harmful partnership with him.

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

“I concluded it was not a fresh legislation I needed as current statutes were already there, and after learning how much my child had been failed before her death by the police and numerous services, they had to do their job properly, and practices needed to change,” she said.

“Over 47 families 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 authorities and CPS for a long time and receiving no resolution for their child or sibling and didn’t have a voice in case it impacted inquiries that weren’t possibly going anywhere.”

Another Tragic Case

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

“She was vibrant, she was caring,” she stated. “She had great potential, and she was an amazing, really loving mother to her two children, and she died by suicide after 24 months in a relationship where she was systematically destroyed by her partner,” she explained.

“She was physically beaten, she was mentally tormented, she was dominated and broken down gradually until she could not see a path ahead. The man who did this to her went unpunished, because we label it self-inflicted death, we close the file and we proceed.

“Yet I was unable to continue,” she said, “and I haven’t been able to move on. Honestly, she didn’t just die by suicide. She was killed. She was killed slowly and intentionally over a two year period, and when I approached the authorities, when I begged them to look into what he had inflicted upon her, I was told that there was no action that they were able to take.

“There was no investigation into her death. The domestic homicide review, which I had to fight for, took five years and changed nothing. A lengthy coroner’s hearing found death by suicide, notwithstanding substantial proof over a extremely distressing multi-day session of family violence and shortcomings by various agencies.”

The mother 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 vital “since when someone takes their own life after they’ve suffered family violence, we have to examine it for what it truly represents, which is homicide.

“We must apply the laws we already possess effectively and it really isn’t happening 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 police to investigate properly. We need the Crown Prosecution Service to prosecute. We need the judiciary to recognize that words and control can cause death equally to physical force and arms.”

Political Response

At a follow-up gathering in the Parliament, chaired by a opposition politician, and attended by the government official, the bereaved relatives again shared their experiences.

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

“The legal system is flawed, we know that,” she said. “Especially around murder or manslaughter, it is piecemeal. It’s not written in statute regardless, it has been shaped with common law practices for centuries, and it is outdated, quite frankly, it’s the world we inhabit today.

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

Prosecution Service Statement

A representative for the prosecution service said: “Domestic abuse is a terrible offense and our legal officers are actively advised to evaluate murder and manslaughter charges in suicide cases where there is a established background of domestic abuse or other manipulative conduct.

“We have in the past prosecuted a several individuals for leading to the fatality of a partner they mistreated, including in proceedings which are currently active.

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