Domestic Violence In Essex: MP Claims People – Not Police – Responsible For Security
For the last two years, my daughter has experienced violent attacks, harassment, death threats and verbal abuse from a former partner.
She has moved house five times to try and escape him, with ELEVEN reported incidents to the police and many others that she has been too afraid to report, the total repercussion of this man’s behaviour is two weeks in prison which occurred after a 999 call took place whilst my daughter was having her head smashed on the pavement and death threats were recorded.
Now, many women will identify with this brief account because domestic violence is an issue that, if you believe the posters in the police station, is being dealt with. However, there exists a huge flaw in the justice system which means that two women a week in the UK will continue to die in these circumstances and countless others will spend their lives in fear and pain.
So what is going so very wrong? My partner and I have had many an encounter with the police and CPS in trying to protect my daughter from this thug all to no avail. The man is a criminal in many fields, each dealt with separately. But why? If he breaks the law on violent offences and then the following week he breaks the law with drug offences and then the following week theft offences surely this shows a pattern that the man is unwilling to live by UK laws?
How come then, when I found my daughter unconscious in the street with the thug in question standing over her, threatening to kill her, I slapped his face and I am on the one who ended up with a caution for common assault? His friend, who was seen by the police earlier in the day to be intoxicated, has lied to the police and said he didn’t hit her despite hospital records that show head injury, whiplash, bruising and concussion. The CPS want to drop the case because he has a witness that said he didn’t do it.
In a desperate attempt to get some justice I wrote to our local MP in Colchester – Douglas Carswell. He said he was appalled at what I claim was happening and that he would look into it. Yesterday, I received a letter from him that states his response from Tim Newcomb, Chief Superintendent at Essex Police, telling him my daughter has declined to make a complaint against this man so the case has been dropped. This is not true. My daughter and other family members have all made statements in fear of reprisals and the police, as far as we knew, were pursuing a prosecution for a criminal act.
His letter also states that “YOUR DAUGHTER OBVIOUSLY HOLDS OVERALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR HER OWN SECURITY”.
What on earth does that mean, Mr Carswell? That she is responsible for the fact that he beat her? That she shouldn’t go out if she wants to be safe?
What happened to a man being responsible for his own actions? What happened to the police being there for our security and protection? What happened to an investigation as no police came out the last time he beat her, no evidence was looked for? What happened to the CPS being responsible for punishing people that act in that way? Why do I pay my tax money for police and courts and MP’s?
So many questions but at least we now know why so many women die every year in domestic violence cases.
Read Mr Carswell’s letter here
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[...] Douglas Carswell – Guilty [...]
Disgraceful. Have had similar experiences where the legal system is designed for people who know how to exploit it. Wish it was an isolated incident but think this is all too common.
Have to just keep pushing the only button they understand – that of spin/PR and hammer them with bad publicity.
The response from the MP would be more or same across all parties. Effectively you’ve asked the MP to look into it, and he is now relaying what the Chief Police officer has said.
Because he has been fed the wrong information, this has been passed back to you – although because he has been given the wrong information it seems insulting.
You now need to go back to your MP and tell him the information he has been given is wrong, and then he should take the issue up once again.
It seems to me that the Police are the ones doing a terrible job here. Hope you manage to sort this out soon.
Looking at the letter Tim Newcomb obviously has lied to the MP but then the MP should check more thoroughly.
What the heck does the bit about being responsible for your own security mean?? What are the police for then?
Ben
I’m very sorry to hear of this situation and hope it will be successfully resolved soon. But I have to say, Dave is absolutely right, in that Douglas Carswell was simply reporting and responding to the facts as they had been presented to him by a reputable source. In the context of his belief that no complaint had been made, his remark about the overall responsibility for an individual’s security being their own was a perfectly reasonable one to make – the state cannot provide people with personal bodyguards and we shouldn’t want constant surveillance, so it relies on people to report any crime committed against them so it can be investigated.
Now if, as would appear to be the case here, complaints have been made and the police have failed to respond adequately – quite possibly resulting at least in part from the woeful lack of democratic accountability in our police forces, against which Mr Carswell has powerfully campaigned – this point becomes moot. To attempt, however, to misrepresent what was a perfectly legitimate comment given in its context as some kind of attack on women, would be grossly irresponsible.
I suspect that those who have said that the MP was fed bad information by the police may be correct. And in order not to be prejudicial, this might in itself have been an error.
Rather than posting this here on a website in the public domain which would almost certainly be considered prejudicial in a court – I would suggest that you should contact Mr. Carswell again and point out the errors in the information he has been given. Any MP would then ask the police again and with more force.
On the point around your daughter being responsible for her own security, I think you are being a little unfair – given that his understanding from the police is that your daughter has refused to make a complaint, to him it must have looked like she wasn’t willing to take any part in ensuring her own security. I am sure it wasn’t meant to be dismissive, but has been taken out of context.
The CPS can only act on evidence and if, for whatever reason, there has been an error made by the police, the CPS can’t proceed without a complaint.
I would get back to your MP and ask him to look again. I would also get back in touch with the officers who have been involved so far (you mention that statements have been taken from your daughter and others – those officers must be able to confirm what is happening) and I would push the police hard to deal with this one.
I am truly sorry for your daughter and your family that she has suffered cruelty and violence at the hands of someone she must have trusted and loved, once. I genuinely wish you the very best with getting the man dealt with properly and effectively.
With warmest wishes
Mark
Dear Catherine,
On being contacted by you, I acted quickly. I contacted the most senior police officer in this part of Essex, demanding to know if the police had acted – and if not, why not. You have a copy of my letter.
The police, as you know, gave me a somewhat different version of events. I am not in a position to contradict either you or the police, as I am not in possession of all the facts.
That was why I again repeated the suggestion that you come to meet me to discuss how to ensure that the criminal justice system respond to your concerns. To date, my invitation has not been taken up.
My principal concern in this matter is to ensure that your daughter is protected – not to get involved in any wider campaign. I am sure that your concern is likewise.
If it is, then can I suggest that you do indeed contact my office, as indicated, to make an appointment to meet me at my regular local surgery to discuss the details of the case and how I might help?
I would prefered not to have responded to this on such a public forum, but as you posted on many such public forums, I felt I had no alternative.
I have acted promptly and in good faith throughout. I hope that you recognise that.
I look forward to discussing this face-to-face with you.
Warm regards,
Douglas Carswell MP
David Bean,
Actually, the police are NOT a reputable source. and if the people on the recieving end of domestic violence cannot be seen as a reputable source then no wonder the problem continues!
If you had any experience or have ever talked to the thousands of women that go through this on a regular basis you would know that 9 times out of 10 they are too afraid of the repurcussions to report acts of violence. With this individual, he has been reported to the police over and over again with no consequence. all it serves to do is wind up the perpetraitor and show him that he is above the law!
My daughter has made a statement and said she is willing to stand up in court against him, albeit in fear, so please tell me how this can be a genuine mistake on the part of the police when it is clear she has done this?
And how about the women that get murdered by their partners? Do they file a complaint after? No, the police take out their own prosecution against someone committing a criminal act, just as in this case!
I don’t think that asking for some action when someone has been violently attacked is the same as asking for a personal bodyguard and I am not suggesting Carswells remark was an attack on women but what I AM suggesting is that those in positions of authority do NOT take the matter seriously enough.
A whole series of foul ups by the police and CPS have left my daughter at risk and when I approach the MP about it, he talkes to the police who say it basically never happened. I don’t believe that is a genuine mistake – you look at paper work and cannot mistake a statement with willingness to go to court as no statement at all. I think they all close ranks and sweep things under the carpet, preferring to deal with things like non-payment of fines in order to tick a box in their ‘crimes solved’ figures!
Mark,
Thank you for your good wishes and it makes me sad to read your post. I too was once someone who believed that the authorites would eventually do the right thing but experience has shown me otherwise.
Please see my reply to David Bean to show why I don’t believe a mistake could have been made regarding the statement.
You are right that the CPS can only act on the evidence presented to them which is why I am confused as to why the police didn’t come out last time they were called – no evidence was collected other than statements at a later date. There can also be no mention of this thug’s countless other attacks on my daughter so why would the CPS listen.
At the end of the day, the CPS like open and shut cases, nothing that’s going to cost too much money to investigate and that attitude, along with the incompetence of the police force, leaves the public in general, vulnerable.
Catherine
Mr Bean -
If Douglas is such a powerful campaigner and if he was in receipt of letters from Catherine outlining the problem then how could he be so easily swayed?
Surely there is more to being a powerful campaigner and more to an investigation of an issue that a ‘did this happen’ – ‘er no’!!!
I can understand the veiled defence of D.C. as you are a Tory supporter and its remarkable that you are putting politics ahead of real life issues and I am sure your undivided loyalty will ensure you gain favour in the Conservative machine – trouble is that doesnt help with the real life problems of people in the street.
These are just hard working taxpayers who lead good lives and they are blighted by this violence, step into the real world Mr Bean.
Mr Carswell
If, as you say, you are not in possession of all the facts, then how are you in any position to comment or to be so dismissive?
How can such a senior policeman look at records and say no complaint was made when actually a statement has been made, at great risk I might add, as well as a declaration of willingness to go to court? He either lied to cover the police/CPS incompetence or simply didn’t look and you took his word for it above the victims?
If you thought about this properly, do you seriously think that I would be writing to you and trying to get something done if we had taken no action through the proper channels?
If your principle concern was my daughters protection then a more thorough investigation would have taken place. And actually, if you care about your voters, then why wouldn’t you look at the wider picture? Do you not think that a vast number of women are suffering the same fate? Do you not think they are suffering due to police and CPS incompetence, lack of investigation, useless laws that need changing and a dismissive attitude of those in power to do anything about it?
This issue has been posted on public forums because time is of the essence. This issue as a whole needs throwing into the public domain because something simply HAS to change. Next time my daughter is attacked by this thug, and there WILL be a next time, I want everyone to know that we went to all the relevant authorities and didn’t get the protection our tax money pays for. That poor woman recently in the papers who was murdered by her boyfriend is one of many but she suffered the same stalking activities as my daughter. If laws were in place to protect her, maybe they would now be effective in my daughters case and for the woman that gets killed this week and for the ones that will get killed next week and the week after and the week after that.
This is YOUR domain. You are in a position to change things if you wanted to.
Catherine
How disgusting that a mother gets put in a cell for trying to defend her daughter, something which the police shouldve done a long time before this horrific attack.
I, as a mother, could not stand and do nothing while my daughter was being kicked unconcious. This idiot needs locking up, but of course that won’t happen until he’s done more serious damage or even worse.
Good luck with your battle Catherine. I for one, support you all the way.
Catherine,
I’m so sorry for your trouble, and I hope you’ll soon have some resolution. Unfortunately, it doesn’t surprise me, as violence towards females is rarely taken seriously.
Catherine, you appear to me to have the upmost restraint and should therefore be applauded by the Police, not cautioned. If it were my daughter, I honestly think I would be on a murder charge by now – sometimes it is the only way to stop these habitual offenders.
This country needs some vigilante justice, then maybe the authorities would start to realise we will no longer sit back and accept these poor levels of protection and ‘box ticking’ crime-solving.
Roger.
I would like to know if there has been any progress here, so often we see complaints raised and yet when the dust settles there has been no action.
In Catherine’s case has the MP responded, has there been any action from Tim Newcomb who seems to have told Mr Carswell a ficticious account of the facts.
Has Mr Carswell looked into the case further, he was quick to ost a reply but then has gone quiet, was this just another public relations exercise or is there some substance to this.
The burning question above all else is how can a thig like this get away with so many offences of violence and not be languishing in jail? That is the question that Mr Carswell should be asking??
I want to know has it been asked???
[...] Domestic Violence [...]
I am related to the victims in this case, and i thank all you who have replied with support for this terrible situation. nothing further has happened about this. The person responsible for this was again,very recently arrested by the police for another offence and was again let out on to the streets.This person is laughing at the police and making fools of them,i think the authorities are just waiting for this to go away, so they can forget about it.