Worse than murder
Adele Bellis lost an ear and half her hair... her attacker has been freed but she still suffers
corrosive substances have nearly trebled in four years.
Adele says tougher jail terms for offenders must be introduced. She said: “We victims are disfigured for life. We have to live with this.
“They should get a longer sentence. There should be a set sentence in place, a hard sentence. We are alive but we have to live with the trauma. I still have half a head of hair, no ear. I’m still having counselling and treatment.”
The Daily Mirror is backing campaigners calling for legal changes to combat the problem. Tonight, Stephen Timms, Labour MP for East Ham in East London, will use the Commons debate to call for tighter restrictions on the sales of corrosive substances, calling for them to only be sold to those holding a license.
Mr Timms will also ask ministers to bring possession of acid – currently not an offence – into line with laws surrounding possession of knives, and introduce harsher sentences for those who carry out such attacks. The MP says: “Too many people are frightened of becoming a victim. Ministers need to act.”
Adele says she is lucky that she managed to turn her head when Harrison threw the acid, meaning most of her face was saved. But she still receives laser treatment every five weeks.
Incredibly, she is empathetic towards Harrison, because she says she understands that Riley forced him to carry out the attack.
For that, Riley was jailed for life, ordered to serve a minimum of 13 years of his prison term. Adele explains that Harrison later wrote to her and apologised for what he had done.
But she still believes that he should not be out of prison, enjoying his life, when she is still struggling to live her own.
Adele says: “Three years on, I’m still suffering. I still need a lot of operations. I have good days, but I still have bad days too.”
Adele Bellis’s book, Brave: How I Rebuilt my Life After Love Turned to Hate, is available now.