On average, two women a week are killed by a partner or ex-partner in England and Wales. It’s a cold fact that compelled me to look into what was being done to protect victims of what is such a widespread crime.
I first started looking at domestic abuse through my interest in crime and policing. I wanted to focus on cases where there were apparent or perceived failings by authorities to protect victims of domestic abuse.
I started looking at the case of Robert Trigg, who was ultimately jailed for life for killing two of his former partners.
The case was intriguing because there was a significant time gap between the two deaths, during which time Trigg went unnoticed by authorities. It was down to the sheer determination of the parents of his second victim that his brutality was exposed and he was ultimately prosecuted and convicted.
Through reporting on the Trigg case, I started to make contacts with people who worked against domestic abuse and realised there were a number of pressing issues worth exploring, not just within the criminal justice sphere.
I was drawn to the desperate state of funding for women’s refuges – the frontline in protecting women and children from domestic abuse. Women’s Aid and other organisations flagged a little-publicised proposal to prevent women paying for refuge places with housing benefit. Welfare was in effect the last remaining guaranteed source of income and the experts were warning that removing it would be devastating for the life-saving service.
To highlight the issue, I visited a women’s refuge and spent time with an amazing person called Charlotte Kneer, who ran the refuge and was a survivor of abuse. She was an incredible advocate for such services, not just as someone who ran a refuge but as someone who suffered at the hands of violent abuse.
I continued to report on this issue, highlighting the vulnerable state of funding for women’s refuges, and ultimately the plans were dropped by the government.
In the meantime, I continued to focus on cases in the criminal justice system where apparent or alleged failings had played a part. I looked at the case of Tara Newbold, who died shortly after a severe beating from her partner. Despite the violence exacted upon her, his history of abusive behaviour and her subsequent death, her partner was not charged with manslaughter or murder, leaving the family with many unanswered questions.
Working on a story like this as a journalist is challenging. I have met some inspirational people and I have met families who have lost their loved ones.
It almost goes without saying that it’s crucial to approach an issue like this sensitively. The first approaches made to a grieving family can be difficult to navigate, but I am spurred on by the thought that highlighting the cases could lead to improvements in the protection of future victims. I believe this was the case for the families themselves, who took some comfort knowing that lessons learned from their own tragedies might benefit the vulnerable in the future.
I was given time and support from my news editors to pursue these stories, which is really valuable when trying to balance day-to-day duties. In the Newbold case, the Guardian’s deputy editor, Paul Johnson, gave the story prominence on the front page of the newspaper and I’m grateful to him for recognising its significance. Likewise, the Trigg piece, at 3,600 words, was unusually long. G2, the features section of the Guardian, and its editor, Kira Cochrane, gave the article a prominent spot in print and online.
I have received an overwhelmingly positive reaction from those who work closely with victims of domestic abuse, including from NGOs and charities, as well as the families with whom I have worked. I have received some abusive phone calls and emails from relatives of the perpetrators involved. This can be challenging, as such crimes can be difficult for relatives of the perpetrators to come to terms with too.
Looking ahead, I continue to have an interest in cases where failings in the criminal justice system or by local authorities may have contributed to an abuse-related death. I believe it is important for journalists to speak truth to power and this will ensure that improvements are made to the services and protections provided. In my role as home affairs correspondent, I’m also covering the government’s proposed domestic abuse bill, which was put out to consultation earlier this year but is yet to be published.
