The families of seven women who died due to domestic violence gathered at parliament square to call for urgent review of sentencing guidelines for men who kill current of former partners.
The loved ones will be holding black and blue plaques bearing the words: “The same murder outside the home would get a decade more. Murder is murder. Change the law.” The urging for change in the law is due to sentencing guidelines in the UK, where the tariff for murder is different if it takes place in someone’s home.
Perpetrators can face a minimum of 15 years behind bars if they kill someone inside a home with a weapon that was already in the premises.
If the weapon was taken to the scene or if the murder was committed outside a home, then the tariff changes to a decade more, starting at 25 years.
ITV reported that Megan Newborough, the daughter of Anthony and Elaine Newborough, was strangled by her partner Ross McCullam in 2021 after he invited her to his house.
Megan‘s body was found in a country lane in Leicestershire and McCullam received a life sentence with a minimum of 23 years.
Had McCullam murdered a stranger on a street, he would have been sentenced to 25 years minimum.
Megan’s mother, Elaine, told ITV News “he can still go on to have a full life”.
“If Megan had been killed in the garden of his house or out on the drive or out in the street the starting point would have begun at 25 years for what could have been a matter of a step from inside the house to outside, how is that fair, how is that reasonable?”
Her father Anthony added: “The judicial system says it’s intent if you take a knife to the crime, however in our case, he murdered Megan in the lounge, went into a separate room, went into the kitchen to get a knife to nearly decapitate her – and you’re telling me that’s not intent?”
Other bereaved families will be attending the gathering on parliament square with plaques dedicated to women and girls killed inside homes.
22-year-old Elinor O’Brien, was fatally stabbed by her boyfriend Kevin Mannion in his Manchester apartment. He was jailed for 23 years.
Julie Butcher, 25, was attacked by her ex-husband Richard Butcher in 2005. He was given a 13 year jail sentence and later released.
Last year, the Claire Wade review commissioned by the government to review domestic homicide was closed with the conclusion not to raise the tariff for 15 years.
However, after analysing the data, the former Conservative government accepted that the starting tariff should be increased to 25 years to align with other murders.
Charity Killed Women says the new labour government can kickstart their pledge to end VWAG in a decade by immediately increasing the tariff.
“All the groundwork has been done. Results analysed. A tougher approach to sentencing has been successful in acting as a deterrent to recent rioters,” they said in a press release,
“We demand the same logic is applied to these domestic terrorists sending out a strong societal message that Violence Against Women and Girls is abhorrent and the punishment will fit the crime.”
