‘Rough-sex’ death case appeal
A MULTI-millionaire who was jailed for leaving his girlfriend to die after a “rough sex” session is set to appeal his sentence.
Property developer John Broadhurst admitted the gross negligence manslaughter of mother-ofone Natalie Connolly in December last year.
The 41-year-old was jailed for three years and eight months – a sentence that was described as “unduly lenient” sentence by Labour’s former deputy leader Harriet Harman.
She urged the Attorney General to review the sentence, a request which was refused. However, there is now a possibility the jail term could be cut.
Ms Connolly was found lying in the hallway at her home she shared with Broadhurst in Kinver, near Stourbridge, in December 2016.
The court was told Broadhurst had gone to bed and left her there after a night of drinking.
She had serious internal
trauma, along with more than 40 separate injuries. A post mortem revealed her cause of death was due to acute alcohol intoxication and blunt force injuries. Broadhurst, of Blakeshall Farm in Wolverley, Worcestershire, was cleared of murdering Natalie and causing her grievous bodily harm on the directions of the judge following legal submissions part-way through his trial at Birmingham Crown Court. As he jailed Broadhurst for 44 months, Mr Justice Julian Knowles told the father-of-three: “You were capable of taking decisions and making choices. This was grossly irresponsible behaviour by you.
“You left that vulnerable young woman to die in the saddest and most avoidable of circumstances. You showed blatant disregard for a very drunk and injured woman.”
However, after serving almost a year of his sentence, Broadhurst has launched an appeal and his case was due to be heard at the Court of Appeal today.