Greater Manchester Police is being sued by the family of a woman stabbed to death by her boyfriend days after officers failed to act on her pleas for help.
Natasha Wild, from Rochdale, was killed by her partner Lloyd Brackenbury, 32, The Mirror reports.
Just days before the 23-year-old had given police a diary detailing the abuse he had subjected her to.
Natasha, who had cerebral palsy, had tried to tell three PCs she had been sexually abused, slashed in the chest and thrown across a room four times, the Mirror reports .
She wrote in the diary that Brackenbury: “Says that because me and my friend said we were forever friends, it means he must kill me."
Court papers claim that one officer described the diary as “nothing”.
They instead focused on his mental health, a Domestic Homicide Review found.
Brackenbury killed her at home in Syke, Rochdale, 11 days later on November 29, 2016.
It came two years after Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary found “significant concerns” about Greater Manchester Police’s ability to protect abuse victims.
Natasha’s mother Susan and sister Amanda Courtney are suing GMP for £10,000.
Highlighting the actions police should have taken, Sarah Westoby, of Leigh Day solicitors, stated in the claim: “Had the Defendant taken any or all of the steps set out [Brackenbury] would have been arrested and the Deceased would have had a substantial chance of avoiding serious ill- treatment and death on 28 November 2016.”
Brackenbury's mental health had deteriorated over the summer of 2016 and the police had been called to the house in August following a disturbance which was recorded as “domestic abuse”.
But he was discharged from the local mental health trust on November 9 after failing to engage and had stopped taking his medication.
On November 18 a senior paramedic made a safeguarding referral, noting Natasha was at “immediate risk”.
Three PCs attended the house and she gave them a laptop with her diary entitled “What living with Lloyd is like.”
It contained allegations of serious criminal offences that should have resulted in Brackenbury being arrested but the officers did not read it properly, the claim states.
After taking Natasha to Susan's home, police had no further contact with the couple before she was stabbed in the neck by Brackenbury.
An inquest jury concluded that the police failings could have contributed to her death.
GMP admitted the officers had failed to follow domestic abuse policy.
Brackenbury was found guilty of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility at Manchester Crown Court in 2017 and was ordered to be detained in a psychiatric hospital.
He was cleared of murder.
GMP is understood to be contesting the claim and has made an application to have it thrown out of court.
The force said: “GMP have taken action in respect of the learning identified within the Independent Office of Police Conduct findings and accept that in this case, the investigation fell short of the standards expected from us, and for this we deeply apologise.
“Our thoughts firmly remain with Natasha's loved ones and those affected by her death.
“A civil claim has been started and it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.”
The force urged anyone suffering abuse to call 0161 636 7525 or the National Domestic Violence Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
