INSULT TO INJURED..
Battered partners told: dilute charge
DOMESTIC violence victims say they are being pressured to agree to reduced charges to help clear a trials backlog caused by lockdown.
It comes as figures show home beating cases rose to 259,324 between March and June, an increase of seven per cent on the same period last year.
One victim today tells of her despair after being asked to go for a lesser charge to settle her case without trial.
She refused and must now wait until April – more than two years after being hurled down stairs, she says.
In April only 76 trials by magistrates took place, compared to a usual monthly figure of about 9,000. That rose to 361 in May and 1,278 in June.
The backlog of all cases peaked at 525,059 in July and had fallen to 489,226 by the end of last month. Magistra trates Courts Association ch chief Jon Collins confirmed: “I “In lockdown only the most u urgent cases were heard.”
Priority magistrates h hearings included those held overnight in custody, cases involving children and offences relating to coronavirus. But the backlog of crown court jury trials continues to swell.
Alex Mayes, of Victim Support, said of trials: “Some are delayed until 2022, while other victims have been told to pursue civil routes, such as applying for non-molestation orders. It makes victims feel their life is on hold.”
One victim has had a trial cancelled in June put back until summer 2021. She lives next door to the suspect. Sexual violence victims seeking help from Victim Support rose 47 per cent by July. Some tormentors kept them prisoner by pretending to have Covid so the home went into isolation.
Justice minister Chris Philp said: “We are continuing to work to maximise capacity across the whole courts and tribunals system.”
nigel.nelson@sundaymirror.co.uk Victim Support is open 24/7 on 0808 16 89 111 or visit victimsupport.org.uk