I’m finally free
RELIEF OF BRUTALLY-BEATEN WOMAN AS THUG HUSBAND SIGNS DIVORCE PAPERS - TWO YEARS AFTER HORROR ATTACK
A WOMAN who was brutally beaten by her violent husband says she is finally free after he signed divorce papers almost two years after he was jailed for the attack.
Suzanne Hill spent five days in hospital after an unprovoked assault by David Jennison following a ‘silly’ row about Britain’s Got Talent.
Jennison, 53, is currently behind bars at Strangeways after choking and raining blows down on Suzanne, who he then tied up with electrical flex and bundled into a sleeping bag.
Despite this, Jennison initially refused to sign divorce papers, instead suggesting that the split might not be necessary.
His refusal led Suzanne to fear she may never be able to move on with her life.
But now - more than two years after the attack Suzanne says she expects her divorce to be granted in the new year.
“I feel free. I can finally move forward,” she says. “My anxiety has not been as bad and I can start the new year and go forward.
“It’s a really nice feeling. What better way to start the new year? And what a good Christmas present.”
Mum-of-three Suzanne has been trying since January to divorce Jennison. But she became convinced that he was trying to control her from behind bars.
Jennison is subject to a restraining order which prevents him from having any contact with Suzanne.
So by writing a letter in response to the request for a divorce, Suzanne says he was aiming to communicate with her through a third party.
“He knows exactly what he is doing,” Suzanne said, when speaking to the M.E.N. back in September.
“He referred to what he did to me as an ‘incident’ and he’s saying it doesn’t have to end in divorce.
“I just want to get a divorce, get away from him and move on but I can’t.”
Lorry driver Jennison was jailed in January 2018 and is serving his sentence at HMP Manchester.
He was handed three years and three months with an extended licence period of three years - meaning even after release he is at risk of being recalled to prison until 2024. In court, Jennison claimed that this was a ‘clash of heads.’
After months of gruelling counselling sessions to help her come to terms with post traumatic stress disorder, Suzanne filed for divorce in January.
But she claimed Jennison was refusing to sign the papers from his jail cell.
Instead, he suggested that perhaps divorce is not the answer.
Suzanne used a government website to try to obtain a divorce for a fee of £550.
When the M.E.N wrote about Suzanne’s case in September, Worsley and Eccles South MP Barbara Keeley wrote to the Justice Secretary about the issues raised.
Suzanne was also helped by staff at Wythenshawe-based charity Safespots, which helps female victims of domestic violence.
Suzanne added: “It’s such a weight off me. What a way to start the new year. It’s such a lovely feeling.”