The Criminal Responsibility of Domestic Abuse-Induced Suicide: The Time has Come to Extend the Law Once Again

(Rhianna Dorrian, Sch, LLB, LLM)

It is estimated that one in eight suicides in the United Kingdom (‘UK’) are related to domestic abuse. (1) However, current statistics on domestic abuse-induced suicides (‘DAIS’) only include victims with a documented history of abuse and therefore exclude the vast majority of DAIS due to the institutional barriers that deter victims from reporting.

With around 76% of domestic abuse cases remaining unreported to UK police, current statistics represent only the tip of the iceberg of the true number of victims who lose their lives to abuse via suicide. (2)

One such individual was Chloe Holland, a 23 year old woman from Portsmouth, who took her life in 2023 after experiencing severe domestic abuse from her former partner Marc Masterton which included handing Chloe a knife and ordering her to harm herself. (3) Having made a two hour video submission to the police prior to her death detailing the abuse she endured and its impact on her mental health, there is a clear link between the abuse Chloe suffered and her suicide. Despite this strong evidence of a causal connection, Masterton was only found guilty of coercive and controlling behaviour and was not held legally responsible for her death in any way.

Following this case, Chloe Holland’s mother, Sharon, petitioned the UK government to create a specific statutory offence of coercive and controlling behaviour resulting in death in order to reflect the totality of harm caused by domestic abuse that result in suicide.

On 18th January 2024, the UK Government rejected Ms Holland’s petition and claimed existing laws are adequate to combat DAIS. (4) However, the government’s rejection rests upon a misplaced faith in the existing offences that have proved to be ineffective in combating DAIS time and time again.

(1) Sylvia Walby, ‘The Cost of Domestic Violence’ (2004) Women & Quality Unit.

(2) Criminal Injuries Helpline, ‘Uncovering The Unreported Numbers In Domestic Abuse Cases’ (Criminal Injuries Helpline, 18 December 2023) Uncovering The Unreported Numbers In Domestic Abuse Cases accessed 29 February 2024.

(3) Sophia Seth and Katie Waple, ‘Chloe Holland death: Mum describes daughter’s coercive control battle’ (BBC, 21 November 2023)  accessed 23 January 2024.

(4) UK Government Petitions  accessed 19 January 2024.

The 2017 case of Justene Reece proved the viability of prosecuting DAIS under existing offences as her abuser, Nicolas Allen, was found guilty of manslaughter following Justene’s
suicide. Despite this supposedly landmark case, there have been no attempted manslaughter prosecutions since, despite worthy cases like Chloe’s presenting themselves to the Crown Prosecution Service. Sadly, Justene’s case has therefore become a legal anomaly rather than establishing a new precedent for criminalising DAIS.

While the UK Government has taken steps to combat domestic abuse through their new Domestic Abuse Act 2021, suicide is not mentioned once, nor is the applicability of existing manslaughter offences to respond to these deaths. The absence of legal clarity on criminalising DAIS under existing offences is therefore a serious blind spot that undermines the credibility of the government’s rejection of a new offence that is designed for DAIS.

Prior to the advent of coercive control, the criminalisation of non-physical abuse under UK common law seemed impossible and yet, this offence now dominates the landscape of domestic abuse legislation. The time has come to revolutionise the law once again and extend the penalty of coercive control in cases that result in death via suicide. Creating a new statutory offence that is designed for the DAIS context will enable cases like Chloe’s to overcome the legal barriers of causation and evidentiary burdens that have hindered the prosecution of DAIS for years.

This new offence will ensure abusers are held responsible to the fullest extent of the law and provide comfort to families who have lost their loved ones forever. While the exact
parameters of this new offence are currently unknown, it is time to design a viable framework for criminalising DAIS in a way that upholds the doctrinal principles of criminal
law whilst allowing for the evolution of societal standards that wish to vindicate the lives of victims who have lost their lives to domestic abuse through suicide.

Rhianna is currently writing her Master’s thesis on the criminal responsibility of domestic abuse-induced suicide and plans to commence her PhD research in this field in September 2024 to create a viable model for a new offence that specifically prosecutes abusers whose victims take their own life.

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