At least 100 UK women are suspected to have been killed by men in 2023

January 3, 2024 by Karen Ingala Smith

Counting Dead Women, has recorded at least 100 UK women who were killed by men, or where the primary suspect for an alleged homicide, is a man, in 2023.

Counting Dead Women monitors the media and collates reports of women suspected to have been killed by men. The project was developed by Karen Ingala Smith, following the murder of Kirsty Treloar in Hackney on 2^nd January 2012. The project is now run with the support of the Femicide Census which Ingala Smith and Clarrie O’Callaghan launched in 2015.

The number of women known or suspected to have been by men in 2023 will inevitably increase beyond 100, sadly even in the next few days. On average since the end of 2009, 140 women have been killed by men every year. That’s an average of two women dead at the hands of a man, every 5 days.

We only count women where men have been charged, or deemed responsible for the death of a woman by a statutory agency, for example in cases such as those where men have killed themselves after killing a woman or have been held under the Mental Health Act in relation to a killing. The Femicide Census has found that on average in just under 12% of cases men who kill women also kill themselves. We always have a number of cases each year where the media have reported the death of a woman but the circumstances are not yet clear. There are regular reports of women being found dead that end up disappearing from the news, they might end up being non-suspicious deaths, overdoses, suicides (often following abuse), men may have been bailed pending investigation and so on. Usually more details become apparent in the course of the year, when criminal charges can be made and as cases proceed through the criminal justice system.

In addition, the Femicide Census sends Freedom of Information requests to the 42 UK police forces asking for information on women suspected to have been killed by men in the preceding year. This also reveals cases that have not featured in the media or which we might not have seen.

Each woman killed is a loss in and of itself in relation to the woman whose life has been taken. On average, in the UK 58 percent of women killed by men are killed by a current or former partner. Often in these cases, the killing of a woman follows months, years or even decades of violence, abuse and coercive control. In addition, analysis by the Femicide Census finds that around 8 percent of women killed by men, are women who were killed by their own son. Around 10 per cent are women who were killed by a stranger.

The killing of women, because they are women and reflecting unequal relationships between women and men as individuals but also collectively, is known as femicide. Femicide is a systemic issue. Whilst individual men must always be held responsible for the actions that they take, femicide is also a product of sex inequality and widely held cultural values. Regardless of her relationship with the man who killed her and the circumstances of her life, each of these women deserves to be remembered by name and as more than just another statistic. Almost every woman’s death leaves grieving family and friends. There should be no hierarchies in femicide.

Counting Dead Women and the Femicide Census are run by a small number of women: Rosie Allen, Dr Katie Elliot, Heather Harvey, Dr Karen Ingala Smith and Clarrie O’Callaghan. Whist we are happy for you to use our work in your own campaigns, research or other projects, we politely request that you reference the source of your data. The Femicide Census and Counting Dead Women are run entirely on donations and voluntary income. If you would like to donate to support our vital work, you can do so here.

Remember her too

October 19, 2021 by Karen Ingala Smith

The speech I gave at the femicide vigil at FiLiA 2021

In the first three days of 2012, 8 women in the UK were killed through men’s violence. Three days, 8 dead women: 3 shot, 1 stabbed, 1 stabbed and beaten so hard with her own walking stick that the wood splintered, 1 beaten, 1 strangled, and 1 smothered.

Since then, I’ve been keeping a record of the women in the UK who have been killed through men’s violence and have personally recorded the names of 1,366 women killed by men or, in cases where criminal justice process hasn’t been concluded or has been prevented, for example if the killer also killed himself, where a man is or was the principal suspect.

I don’t think there’s a person here who won’t know the name of Sarah Everard almost everyone here will also know the name of Sabina Nessa, both women killed this year and whose deaths made national headlines.

But between Sarah and Sabina at least 77 other women were killed in circumstances where a man is held as suspect, awaiting trial or would be if he were still alive.

Do you know the name of the 84-year-old woman who was allegedly strangled by a burglar? What about the 25-year-old woman who was found dead in bags with the body of her two-year-old daughter, the two-year-old daughter who is suspected to have been sexually assaulted – as well as another child who survived – found buried in concrete beneath someone’s floor? The 82-year-old suspected to have been stabbed by her 84-year-old husband? Or the 29-year-old, found dead in the street with stab wounds to her neck, chest and arm, killed by her husband. At least 115 UK women are suspected to have been killed by men this year. The names of most of these women are not household names.

Men’s fatal violence against women cuts across all sections of society, across ages, class and ethnicity. But, some women are afforded more empathy than others. Some are more likely to be disbelieved, to be blamed, to be sent away without the help they need.

This appalling hierarchy of victims continues into death. It is almost always the young, conventionally attractive, middle-class, white woman killed by a stranger, the perfect victim, who makes the front pages.

Not the 50-year-old from a council estate in Leicestershire, killed by the father of her children after a 30-year marriage, where her life and dignity have been chipped away, little by little, every day. Not the immigrant. Not the 45year old homeless woman with a drug problem who was sexually abused from childhood to death. We need to end the hierarchy of dead women.

And of course, that hierarchy is there in life too. Black women and disabled women are disproportionately victimised yet more likely to receive a sub-standard response from state agencies. Poor women are more likely to be blamed.

Because of the Femicide Census, we know that in the UK 92% of women who are killed by men are killed by someone they know. One in 12 (or 8%) is a woman who is killed by her son. That’s the same proportion– 8% – of women in the UK who are killed by a stranger. 62% of women killed by men are killed by a current or former partner. More than 40% of these had already left or were taking steps to leave him. More than a third of these were killed in the first month post separation, almost ¾ within the first year.

Because of the Femicide Census we know that Sarah Everard was the 16th UK woman to be killed by a serving or former police officer since 2009.

Femicide is the killing of women, girls and female infants and foetuses, predominantly but not always committed by men. Femicide maintains men’s individual and/or collective dominant status, or reflects the lower status of females. Femicide is not just homicide of women by men, it’s about how and why women are killed and how this is different to the circumstances in which men are killed.

Do I believe it is possible to end men’s violence against women, to end femicide? I don’t know. Do I believe it is likely? No. There just isn’t the will. Patriarchal societies, in which men hold primary power and predominate in roles of political leadership, authority, social privilege and control of resources, ensure that power stays with the powerful and advantaged; it’s the same with socio-economic class, it’s the same with race. Sure, there will continue to be steps to address men’s violence against women and girls. And mostly these will have originated from feminists but what is implemented by the state will always be a watered-down version.

Men’s violence against women and girls is both a cause and consequence of sex inequality. Whilst perpetrators must be held responsible for their actions and behaviours; men’s violence against women is not reducible simply to individual acts perpetrated by individual men. Men’s violence against women is a key instrument of men’s domination of women, supported and normalised by patriarchal institutions, attitudes and social norms and values.

What can you do? Make politicians know you care. Make politicians know that men’s violence against women is an issue that could lose them votes. Make sure that every woman counts. Make them know that they damn well better be able to say that only women have a cervix.

Know their names. Not just Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa. But Mandeep Singh, Angela Tarver, Valerie Richardson, Mihrican Mustapha, Sammy-Lee Lodwig, Denise Keene-Simmons.

Thank you, Keira Cadwell, for creating this beautiful commemoration to women. Each heart carrying the name of a woman killed by a man, taken from my work at Counting Dead Women.

Trauma-Informed Services for Women Subjected to Men’s Violence Must be Single-Sex Services

July 8, 2020 by Karen Ingala Smith

For many women and girls, the boundaries between domestic and sexual violence and abuse, are very much blurred. For some this abuse includes prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation too.

It’s not unusual for women who’ve been subjected to men’s violence to develop a trauma response. These sometimes develop after a single incident of violence, particularly with regards to sexual violence, though sometimes it can develop after years or months of living in fear, walking on egg-shells, recognising that tone of voice, that look in the eyes, that sigh, that pause, that silence, that change in his breathing. Some women have lived this, with a succession of perpetrators starting from their dad – who may have been physically, sexually or emotionally violent, abusive and controlling or a mixture of them all – all their lives.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can develop in response to trauma that may have occurred recently or in the distant past. Those who have experienced sexual trauma, especially whilst young are at greater risk, with victims of multiple forms of childhood abuse and neglect most at risk of lifetime trauma[i] Women victim-survivors of child sexual abuse are at least twice as likely to experience adult sexual victimisation[ii]. 51% of adults who were abused as children experienced domestic abuse in later life and approximately one in six adults who were abused as a child had been subjected to domestic violence and abuse in the previous year[iii].

Studies of women involved in prostitution found that between 63-80% reported being subjected violence in the course of being prostituted[iv]. One study found that women in prostitution were murdered at a rate 12 times above that of non-prostituted women[v]. Many women in prostitution describe sexual encounters as non-consensual, coerced or economically coerced rape. Two-Thirds of women in prostitution suffer PTSD.[vi]

After trauma, the brain can be triggered by something that would barely register for someone else, interpreting something that for many people would be unthreatening as a serious threat or danger, for example the presence of a man, particularly where not expected.

PTSD/trauma responses happen in a part of the brain called the amygdala. The amygdala detects a threat or perceived threat and can activate a “fight or flight” response. This releases adrenaline, norepinephrine, and glucose into the body, and if the threat continues, cortisol. A part of the prefrontal cortex (an area in the front of the brain that processes emotions and behavioural reactions) assesses the threat and can either calm or reinforce the fight or flight response. People suffering trauma/PTSD have a hyper reactive amygdala and a less effective calming prefrontal cortex reaction. The brain becomes overwhelmed by the trauma (pre-frontal cortex shutdown) leading to disorientation and confusion as the higher brain functions of reasoning and language are disrupted. Thinking and reasoning can be drowned out by feeling and being. Prolonged stress can lead to permanent change in the prefrontal cortex.

A trauma-informed safe space creates space for action and recovery from violence and abuse and places the woman victim-survivor in control and in the centre. The trauma response described earlier is the antithesis of a space for action and recovery, so a trauma informed approach is based on understanding the physical, social, and emotional impact of trauma caused by experiencing violence and abuse. A trauma-informed service for women understands the importance of creating an environment – physical and relational – that feels safe to victims-survivors in all the ways I’ve just mentioned. For many women this means excluding men from their recovery space, and yes, this includes those who don’t identify as men. Their behaviour, the likelihood that they themselves may be abusive, is not relevant. If it is not women-only, it is not trauma informed for women who have been subjected to men’s violence.

We know that at least 80% of males who hold a gender recognition certificate retain their penis, but anyway, in almost every case, we don’t need to know what’s in their pants to know they are a man. Women experiencing trauma after violence and abuse will, like most of us – almost always instantly read someone who might be the most kind and gentle trans identified male in the world – as male; and they may experience a debilitating trauma response as a result. It’s not their fault, it’s not a choice and it’s not something they can be educated out of. It’s not hate. It’s not bigotry. It’s not transphobia. It is an impact of abuse and they need space, support and sometimes therapy – not increased confrontation with a trauma inducing trigger; not nowhere to go that offers a woman-only space.

To properly heal from trauma, in particular that caused by sexual violence, a course of counselling/therapy from a counsellor/therapist specially trained to deal with trauma/PTSD from sexual or domestic violence and abuse is often needed. Unfortunately, far too few women are offered this opportunity. Specialist women-led women-only organisations supporting victim-survivors of men’s violence are rarely funded to the extent that we can meet the levels of need that exist. All too often we’re contracted to do what commissioners value, this isn’t always what women want and need.

Women should not need to justify our desire for or the benefits of women-only space on the basis of violence perpetrated upon us or our sisters but we should recognise that some women need or benefit from it more than others. Not all women who are subjected to men’s violence and abuse will develop a trauma response. Not all women will be subjected to men’s violence and abuse, though globally one in three are at some point during our lifetime. Not all women who have been abused by men want women-only spaces but should they then take away the right of that space from those who do?

Of course, women who experience trauma/PTSD as a result of men’s violence are required to function in a world where men are present and for the most part, do. But women-only spaces in Rape Crisis Centres, refuges, women’s centres or women-only buildings or events, etc are spaces where women are not required to make all the mental self-adjustments to function in the presence of men. Women survivors and feminists (many of us both) created these spaces because we know how important this is. Somewhere we can function and feel OK, safe, maybe even relaxed and with our defences down and our vigilance switch turned low. Women who have been subjected to men’s violence deserve this down time, this head space. Women-only space for women who have been subjected to men’s violence and abuse is something that must be protected by those of us who don’t need it, for those of us who do.

[i] Widom et al. 2008.
[ii] Classen, Palesh, & Aggarwal, 2005
[iii] ONS Impact of child abuse on later life, Crime Survey for England and Wales, year ending March 2016
[iv] Kinnell, 1993; Barnard et al., 2002, Campbell & Stoops, 2010
[v]Ward, Day & Weber, 1999
[vi] Farley, 1998.

1,000 dead women

January 1, 2019 by Karen Ingala Smith

In memory of Kirsty Treloar

New Year’s Day 2019 and before dawn on the first morning of the New Year a woman in her early thirties, whose name has not yet been made public, was stabbed to death in Camberwell, South London. She will be the 1,000^th woman killed by a man whose name I will record on my website Counting Dead Women.

7 years ago today, 20 year-old Kirsty Treloar received a text from Miles Williams, the 19 year-old father of her not-yet 4-week old baby. The text read

“Okay wer all gud now and my new yrs ressy is that i aint going to hit u again and i won’t hit u 4 this yr next yr the yr after that the next yr after that.”

And went on to say “But I wont u to swear on (their daughter’s) life u wont p.ss me off and do things to make me angry love you 4 eva.’

Kirsty was terrified of Miles and had been trying to extricate herself from their relationship; she told him that she didn’t want to see him. She’d spent Christmas at her family home in Hackney. The next day, Kirsty paid the price of lack of compliance. Williams broke in to the house and dragged her in to a car, stabbing and wounding her sister and brother who were trying to protect her. She was later found dead, dumped beside bins some two miles away. She had been stabbed 29 times.

A few weeks before, Kirsty had been referred to nia, the charity where I work, which supports women and girls subjected to men’s violence. I was told of Kirsty’s death and looked on the internet to see if I could find out what had happened. But Kirsty wasn’t the only woman killed by a man at the start of the year, there were multiple reports of fatalities of women and so I made a note of their names because I wanted to know how many there were. It turned out that in the first three days of 2012, eight women in the UK had been killed by men : three shot, one stabbed, one strangled with a dog lead, strangled, one – a 77 year-old woman – beaten to death with her own walking stick, and an 87 year old woman battered to death with blunt force trauma by her own grandson.

Seven years and 1000 women later, I haven’t stopped recording the names of women killed by men. In reality, the number is even higher, every year there are a number of unsolved cases where women have been killed and statistically almost all of them will have been committed by men. There are cases where men appear to have played a direct role in the death of a woman but they manage to evade prosecution. I suspect there are women whose disappearance has gone unreported, or whose absence has gone unacknowledged and whose body will never be found. There are women who die of secondary causes related to long histories of abuse by men and there are women who kill themselves because that is the only route they can see to end the pain of violence and abuse.

I continued because I cannot bring myself to say that the next woman killed isn’t important. I continue because a focus on intimate partner homicides at the exclusion of other killings disguises and diminishes the true rate of men’s fatal violence against women. I continue because the killing of women by their current and former partners is so normalised that it is not recognised as a national emergency. I continue because the need for and benefits of specialist single-sex services for women victim-survivors of men’s violence are still subjected to challenge and given insufficient regard. I continue because I want someone to bear witness and commemorate our sisters. I continue because the slaying of women by men, although it has happened at least 1,000 times in seven years, continues to be described by the police and reported in the media as an ‘isolated incident.’ I continue because I believe the more we look, the more we can learn and the more effectively we can take steps to reduce men’s violence against women. I continue because I believe a different world is possible, but it is only by consciously committing to making changes that look at the multitude of factors that support and enable men’s violence against women, that will give us a hope in hell of getting there.

We need to stop the hierarchy of dead women

December 11, 2018 by Karen Ingala Smith

2 British women and a third who had lived in London for 20 years went missing abroad within 6 days. All three were found dead within 6 days.

130 Karen Cleary-Brown This is Karen Cleary-Brown. She was 44 years old and had lived in Islington, N, London for 20 years. She had been missing in Jamaica since 25 November. She was found dead on 3^rd December. A man who was working on her property has been charged with her murder.

130 barbara Findley This is Barbara Findley. She was 58 and from Kennington, S. London but had lived in Jamaica for the last 5 years. She was reported missing on 29 November. She was found dead on 5 December.

130 Grace Millane

This is Grace Millane. She was 22 and from Essex. She went missing on 1^st December whilst travelling in New Zealand. She was found dead on 9 December. A 26-year-old male, who has been granted name suppression whilst awaiting trial, has appeared in court in relation to her death.

How many of those names did you know? How many of their photos had you seen?

The killing of Grace Millane is an atrocity, but no more so than the killings of Karen Clearly-Brown and Barbara Findley, no more so than the (at least) 127 other UK women suspected to have been killed by men (or where a man or men are the principal suspects) so far this year.

Karen Cleary-Brown, Barbara Findley and Grace Millane – 3 missing women, 3 women found dead.

The killings of women who are not young, not white, not killed on holiday, not killed by a stranger should be no less shocking or upsetting. They are not less worthy of media or public attention or mourning. We need to stop the hierarchy of dead women.

2018

March 10, 2018 by Karen Ingala Smith

127 women

2018

176 women killed by men, or where a man or men have been linked to the suspicious death of a woman.

3 January 2018: Elisabeta Lacatusu, 44, was killed by 19 knife injuries to her chest and neck inflicted by her former partner, Genu Armeanu, 45, whom she had left the previous month. Armeanu, of East London, was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum of 28 years.
5 January 2018: Tamara Sinakova, 61, was strangled to death by her partner, Rojs Avaliani, 37, at their home in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire. Avaliani was found guilty of murder. He was sentenced to life and ordered to serve a minimum of 16.5 years imprisonment.
5 January 2018: Terrie-Anne Jones, 33, was stabbed 26 times by her partner John Lewis, 56, at her home in Neath Port Talbot, South Wales. Her injuries included an 8cm deep stab wound to her heart, 13 to her neck, three to her collarbone, and two to her chest, with defence wounds to both hands. Lewis was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 19 years for her murder.
8 January 2018: Claire Tavener, 27, was stabbed 10 times with a lock-knife – including two to the neck and two to the chest by her husband Andrew Tavener, 45. A Domestic Homicide Review found that Andrew Tavener had a history of violence and abuse against Claire, and other women. Tavener was sentenced to life imprisonment and ordered to serve at least 16 years and eight months.
9 January 2018: Julie Clark, 59, was found dead at her home in Hereford. She had died of stab wounds, inflicted by her son, Jason Nellist, 41. Nellist was given an indefinite hospital order after being found unfit to plea because of mental illness.
10 January 2018: Geraldine Mellor, also known is Geri, 32, was strangled to death by her boyfriend of six months, Darrell Rose, 36, after she tried to separate from him. Darrell Rose strangled Geri in her own home, in Devon. His claims of self-defence were dismissed by the judge as ‘unbelievable’. Rose was sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in prison for murder.
12 January 2018: Amelia Blake, 22, was killed whist travelling in Australia by her boyfriend, Brazil Gurung, 33, who also killed himself. Amelia was strangled and suffered blunt force trauma to her face and head. An inquest into her death ruled that the manner of death was ‘homicide during an episode of interpersonal violence’.
13 January 2018: Cassie Hayes, 28, was killed by Andrew Burke, 30, the ex-partner of her girlfriend. Cassie Hayes was attacked by Burke at her workplace; a travel agency in Southport town centre. As Cassie was assisting a family, Burke slit her throat. He was sentenced to 26 years for murder and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.
15 January 2017: Natalie Hastings, 41, was run down in Queensway, Hemel Hempstead by Simon Whittle, 49. Reportedly they had been friends for 20 years and more recently, Whittle had started lodging with Natalie. Witnesses heard him shouting ‘you’re dead’ just before he run her over. Whittle is serving a minimum of 20 years in prison for her murder.
24 January 2017: Claire Harris, 44, was killed by her ex- partner Rickardo Wilson, 50, whom she had allowed to stay in the flat she rented whilst he looked for a new home. She had suffered 86 injuries – half of them to her head and face. Wilson was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to 15 years. Wilson had been violent and abusive towards Claire throughout their relationship.
26 January 2018: Cheryl Gabriel-Hooper, 51, was shot dead by her husband, Andrew Hooper, 45, as she sat in her car outside her home in Newport, Shropshire. She had recently separated from Hooper. At sentencing, the judge described the shooting, which took place in front of Cheryl’s 14-year-old daughter, as a ‘planned execution’. Andrew Hooper was sentenced to 31 years in prison for murder.
29 January 2018: Janet Scott, 51, was stabbed by her ex-boyfriend Simon Mellors, 56. She survived the attack but he ran her over and killed her as she tried to flee. Mellors had killed a former partner, Pearl Black in 1999, and killed Janet whilst on licence. Before the killing, Mellors had made threats to kill Janet, and her husband, Chris Scott. He committed suicide whilst on remand for Janet’s murder.
29 January 2018: Agnieszka Swierczynska-Jaros, 37, died of multiple organ failure in a house fire in Trowbridge that had been started deliberately. Three men were arrested on suspicion of arson with the intent to cause harm but were released due to lack of evidence. In her inquest the coroner said that he believed witnesses had been untruthful and was convinced that the fire was a deliberate act because there were two start points and traces of fuel throughout the house.
29 January 2018: Paula Harris, 44, was strangled to death by her partner Michael Foster, 39 at their home, in Mansfield, Nottingham. A review into the killing found that Foster had been violent and abusive towards women, and that he had strangled another woman with whom he had had an intimate relationship. He was sentenced to at least 16 years in prison for Paula’s murder.
29 January 2018: Kate Jaworski Green, 33, suffered significant injuries when Jordan Howlett, 24, deliberately drove his car headlong collision along a country road in Wakefield on 27^th January 2018. Howlett claimed he was trying to kill himself. Charged with murder, the court later accepted a plea of guilty to manslaughter. He was sentenced to 10 and a half years, half of which must be served in custody.
6 February 2018: Ruksana Begum, 47, was stabbed by her son-in-law, Muhammed Tafham, 30 at her home in Rochdale. Ruksana had been assisting her daughter, who had been subjected to a long history of domestic violence by Tafham, to end their arranged marriage. At trial, Tafham claimed that Ruksana had stabbed herself. She had suffered three major stab wounds to the front of her body and one of them passed right through her heart. The jury rejected Tafham’s claims and found him guilty of murder.
10 February 2018: Samantha Archer, 43, was injected with heroin by her boyfriend Andrew Williams, at her home in Hartlepool. He has been found guilty of manslaughter. Williams claims that she consented but also told officers he had pushed Ms Archer onto a settee “to calm her down” and that he had given her more than usual.
13 February 2018: Saeeda Hussain, 54, was killed by her husband, Muhammed Javed, 58, at their home in Ilford, East London. After subjecting Saeeda to years of coercive and abusive behaviour, Javid attacked Saeeda with a machete and a hammer. He was sentenced to a minimum of 20 years for murder.
13 February 2018: Danielle Richardson, 24, was stabbed 15 times in her face, neck and back by her boyfriend Michael Marler, 37. Danielle’s body was found in a flat, in Manchester, after Marler jumped out of the window. He is serving 21 years for murder.
16 February 2018: Sarbjit Kaur, 38, was found dead at home in Wolverhampton after what was set up to look like a botched robbery. She had been asphyxiated. Her husband Gurpreet Singh, 42, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 19 years.
17 February 2018: Jill Sadler, 58, was smothered as she slept by her husband David Sadler, 61. He inflicted 50 injuries to her face, neck and abdomen during the attack. David Sadler, of Liverpool, was sentenced to seven years for manslaughter.
18 February 2018: Heather Jordan, 34, was strangled by Martin Corns, 52. Corns was a colleague who had been harassing and stalking Heather for some time. She had told him that she did not want a relationship with him. Corns killed Heather when she was walking to her place of work in Priorswood, Taunton.
21 February 2018: Lynn McNally, 46, died of multiple stab wounds inflicted by her partner Paul Beddoes, 44, at their home in Telford. She had been stabbed 17 times with two knives. Beddoes is serving 14 years and 190 days for murder.
22 February 2018: Charlotte Teeling, 33, was last seen alive and was reported missing four days later. She was found dead on 2 March in a flat in Birmingham. She had been strangled by Richard Bailey, 40, who had 171 prior convictions, including a string of violent offences against women.
25 February 2018: Mary Ragoobeer, 46, her two sons and two other women were killed in an explosion in a shop below the Ragoobeer’s flat in Leicester. Arkan Ali, 37, Hawkar Hassan, 32, and Aram Kurd, 33, have been found guilty of murdering five people.
25 February 2018: Leah Reek, 18, and four others were killed in an explosion which destroyed a shop and the flat above it. Arkan Ali, 37, Hawkar Hassan, 32, and Aram Kurd, 33, have been found guilty of murdering five people.
25 February 2018: Viktoria Ljevleva, 22, and four others were killed in an explosion which destroyed a shop and the flat above it. Arkan Ali, 37, Hawkar Hassan, 32, and Aram Kurd, 33, have been found guilty of murdering five people.
27 February 2018: Denise also know as Crystal Gossett, 45, and her daughter Diane, 19 (below), son Edward, 16 and Diane’s young granddaughter, were killed in house fire in Co Fermanagh. Daniel Allen, 27, has been charged with four counts of murder and one count of arson with intent to cause danger to life. As of December 2021, Allen is still awaiting trial.
27 February 2018: Sabrina also known as Elektra Gossett, 19, her daughter, mother (above) and brother, were killed in a house fire. Daniel Allen, 27, has been charged with four counts of murder and one count of arson with intent to cause danger to life. As of December 2021, Allen is still awaiting trial.
27 February 2018: Laura Huteson, 21, was stabbed in the throat by Jason Gaskell, 23, at his home in Hull. Previous partners of Gaskell said that he had a history of violent sadomasochist sex. He was sentenced to six years for manslaughter by gross negligence.
28 February 2018: Anne James, 74, was stabbed more than 30 times in her head and back by her grandson, Gregory Irvin, 26, who also slit her throat in the attack. Anne was attacked in her home in Bilston, West Midlands. Irvin, who had a history of violence and abuse against women, is serving 24 years for murder.
February 2018: Julie Reilly, 47, was last seen alive on 6 February 2018. Her disappearance became a murder investigation as parts of her body were found close to her Glasgow home, in April. Andrew Wallace, 41, who had stabbed Caroline Parker, 51, to death in 1992, was found guilty of Julie’s murder. He is yet to reveal the location of Julie Reilly’s remains.
5 March 2018: Laura Cecilia Navarette De Figueria, 47, was found stabbed to death at her home in Twickenham shortly after the bodies of her husband Adelino Figueira de Farida, 57, and their two sons aged 7 and 10, were found at the bottom of cliffs. An inquest found that Adelino Figueira de Farida had unlawfully killed Laura, their sons and then himself.
5 March 2018: Angela Rider, 51, was strangled to death by her ex-husband, Adrian Rodi, 49, at her home in Cawood, North Yorkshire. A review into the killing revealed that Rodi had subjected Angela to violence and abuse throughout their relationship and that he had strangled her on multiple occasions.
6 March 2018: Fiona Scourfield, 54, was killed by her 17-year-old stepson Reuben Braithwaite at their home in Wales. Braithwaite battered her over the head with an axe and slit her throat with a Samuri sword before attempting to upload photos of her deceased body to the internet. The court heard that Braithwaite had considered attacking his father but thought that he would be “too powerful” and would fight back.
15 March 2018: Hope Barden, 20, died of asphyxiation during a sex-act on the internet paid for by Jerome Danger, 45. Danger was a regular online sex forum user preoccupied with strangulation, stabbing, torture and death. He was due to be questioned in relation to Hope’s death whilst serving a 14-month prison sentence for possession of pornography consisting of “the worst images it is possible to image” when he was found dead.
17 March 2018: Jennifer Rogers, 56, was stabbed to death by her terminally ill husband, Peter Rogers, 61, at a holiday let in Cornwall. It was claimed that the couple had agreed to end their lives. Peter Rogers was sentenced to two and half years in prison.
16 March 2018: Michelle Savage, 32, and her mum Heather Whitbread, 53, were shot dead by Michelle’s ex-husband Paul Savage,35, at their home in East Sussex. Paul Savage was violent, controlling and abusive towards Michelle throughout their nine-year relationship. Michelle had told friends that she believed he wanted to kill her.
16 March 2018: Heather Whitbread, 53, and her daughter Michelle Savage, 32, were shot dead by Michelle’s ex-husband Paul Savage, 35. Savage is serving 38 years for double murder.
21 March 2018: Diane Jones, 62, was hit at least eight times with a claw hammer by her son Wayne Beer, 42, at their home in Castleford, West Yorkshire. Her skull was fractured in several places.
30 March 2018: Jenny Cronin, 72, was doused in petrol and set alight by her ex-son-in-law Kieren Lynch, at her home in Essex. Lynch killed himself in the attack. Jenny’s daughter had made a number of calls to police regarding Lynch’s harassment, stalking and threats to kill. An inquest found that Jenny was unlawfully killed by Cronin.
30 March 2018: Leyla Mtumwa, 36, was strangled then stabbed at least 49 times in her head, neck, body and arms by her husband Kema Salum, 38, in front of her 12-year-old son at their north London home. Salum had been extremely violent to a previous partner. Sentencing Salum to 23 years for murder, the judge described him as an ‘arrogant, controlling bully’.
31 March 2018: Ourania Lambrou, 80, died after being pushed to the ground by Harry Goodwin-Sim, 29, at a bus stop in Camden, north London. She hit her head and died of a brain haemorrhage, which was caused by the assault. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
2 April 2018: Tanesha Melbourne, 17, died in her mother’s arms after having been shot in a drive-by shooting. No one has been charged in connection with her death.
6 April 2018: Tracy Stonehouse, 51, was battered repeatedly around the head, strangled and then stabbed six times by her husband Arthur Stonehouse, 73, at his home in Solihull. According to reports, he has been telling people he “would kill her”.
7 April 2018: Lesley Potter, 66, was beaten and strangled by her husband Derek Potter, 63, in their home in South Wales. He attempted to make her death look like suicide by hanging but later confessed to a colleague that he had killed her.
10 April 2018: Alexis Flynn, 42, died after having been stabbed to death, by her ex-partner, David Payne, 51, at her home in Ayrshire. He was also charged with punching her on the face and body, putting his hands round her neck and compressing in February this year. At the time of her death, Payne was banned by a court from approaching her.
12 April 2018: Viktorija Sokolova, 14, was raped and killed through blunt force trauma to her head in a park in Wolverhampton by Ayman Aziz, 16. She was found dead on a park bench a day after being reported missing. Aziz was convicted of rape and murder.
12 April 2018: Margaret Howlett, 63, was stabbed to death by her husband, David Pawluk, 59, at their home in Rochdale. Pawluk stabbed her repeatedly in the face and neck. Margaret confided in friends that Pawluk was controlling and had a gambling problem.
13 April 2018: Maryna Zhytnyk-Kavaliauske, 35, was strangled to death with a ligature at her home in Worthing. An inquest found that Alex Chernoff, 43, was ‘obsessed’ with Maryna and was increasingly abusive towards her. The coroner ruled that Chernoff had unlawfully killed Maryna and that he killed himself at the scene.
14 April 2018: Angela Craddock, 40, was beaten to death in her home in Warrington, by her ex-partner, William Smart, 54, who had just been released from prison for a previous assault he inflicted in her. She had over 100 injuries and was so badly injured she had to be identified by her fingerprints
15 April 2018: Natasha Hill, 18, died of a head injury. Her partner, Scott Clifford, 33, inflicted more than 100 injuries at her home in Chesire after kicking, punching, biting and stamping on her. He also attacked her with a guitar and stabbed her with a broken drum stick. Clifford was found guilty of her murder and a further two counts of actual bodily harm and one of common assault relating to incidents prior. He will serve 17 years and 165 days in prison.
15 April 2018: Samantha Clarke, 38, was stabbed to death her nephew Jordan Clarke, 21, at the family home in Brixton, London. Jordan Clarke was found guilty of manslaughter by diminished responsibility. He was detained in a secure hospital.
18 April 2018: Jennifer Morgan, 33, was stabbed to death. Her body was found in the garden of her home in Kirkintilloch, Her partner, Hugh Baird, 39, was charged with her murder and was due to stand trial a week before he was found dead in his cell with an apology to Jennifer’s family written on the wall. An inquiry ruled he had killed himself.
19 April 2018: Cecilia Seddon’s body was found concealed in a mattress in a property in Penzance, she had last been seen on 13 April. Clayton Hawkes, 52, with whom she was in a casual relationship, and Blaze Fisher, 25, were charged with perverting the course of justice. Hawkes was also charged with injecting her with a noxious substance (heroin and cocaine). Her body was so badly decomposed when it was found that it was impossible to identify the cause of her death. She was 32.
20 April 2018: Julie Hunt, 47, was beaten to death by Florin Ion, 31, on her way to work at Lakeside Shopping Centre, in Essex. Witnesses said that Ion kicked Julie Hunt to death ‘like he was taking a free kick’ and was repeatedly shouting words like ‘hate’ and ‘why did you leave me’. There was no relationship between Julie Hunt and Florin Ion. He was sentenced to life for murder.
21 April 2018: Betty Lyons, 85, was strangled by her husband George Lyons, 88, at their home in Rochester. He then killed himself. Betty’s death was recorded as unlawful killing.
22 April 2018: Hollie Kerrell, 28, was reported missing and later found dead, buried in a shallow grave. Her husband of 5 years from who she had recently separated, Christopher Kerrell, 35, used a hammer to batter the right side of her head before strangling her at her home in Dyfed, Wales.
26 April 2018: Elizabeth Lacey, 63, was stabbed to death. Her son, Christopher Lacey, 21, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility, has been detained under the Mental Health Act in relation to her death. Edwina Holden, a carer for Elizabeth’s 94-year-old mother was also stabbed 12 times and survived the attack.
26 April 2018: Joleen Corr was beaten and thrown down the stairs at her home in Northern Ireland, by her boyfriend Michael O’Connor, 23, in December 2016. She was left brain damaged and in severe pain, requiring 24-hour care. She died, aged 27, after a landmark court ruling that she should no longer be kept alive. O’Connor is serving a life sentence for murder.
27 April 2018: Fiona Fisher, 51, was stabbed by her son Thomas Fisher, 22, at her home in East Sussex. Thomas Fisher admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
28 April 2018: Faye Caliman, 30, was stabbed 12 times by her husband Marian Caliman, 32, in her face, neck, stomach, heart and back at her home in Nottinghamshire. He filmed himself slapping and shouting abuse at her before he killed her.
30 April 2018: Nicola Roberts, 44, was bludgeoned unconscious by her ex-husband Neil Barass, 45, before he stabbed her to death and then killed himself at his home in Leicestershire. An inquest found that Nicola was unlawfully killed by Barrass.
2018: Mihrican Mustafa, 38, was found dead in East London on 26 April 2019, she had been reported missing by her family in May 2018. Her body was found alongside the body of Henriett Szus, believed to have been killed in 2016, in a freezer in Canning Town, East London. Mihrican had been beaten and strangled. Zahid Younis, 35, is serving 38 years for double murder.
13 May 2018: Onees Khatoon, 71, was strangled by her son, Majid Butt, 51, in her home in West London. Butt received a life sentence for murder.
13 May 2020: Sarah Clayton, 21, was found dead in a tent on a campsite in East Sussex. She had been strangled to death. Her fiancé Christopher Cole, 30, whom she had been seeing since February and who had a history of violence and abuse against women, was found guilty of murder.
14 May 2018: Jessica Patel, 34, was injected with insulin and strangled with a carrier bag by her husband, Mitesh Patel, 37, at their home in Middlesbrough. A review into the killing found that Mitesh Patel was controlling and abusive to Jessica throughout their marriage. He had planned to claim a two million pounds life insurance pay-out after the murder.
15 May 2018: Rosina Coleman, 85, was killed in her own home in Romford, Essex by blunt force trauma to her head and neck inflicted with a hammer by ‘handyman’ Paul Prause, 65, whom she had paid previously to complete odd jobs. Prause had racked up significant debt through gambling and stole jewellery worth £7000 from Rosina. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison.
18 May 2018: Bernadette Green, 88, was found dead. Her death was not initially thought to be suspicious, but after post mortem tests, her son John Green, 65, was charged and later convicted of her murder. John Green smothered Bernadette to death at their home in Lancashire. Her body also indicated signs of ‘severe neglect’.
20 May 2018: Sophie Cavanagh, 31, was found dead. Her estranged husband, Martin Cavanagh, 35, strangled Sophie at his flat in Bromley, south-east London. At trial, he was described as a ‘jealous and controlling man’. He was sentences to a minimum term of 16 years for Sophie’s murder.
20 May 2018: Angela Conoby, 54, stabbed to death by her partner of more than 30 years, Peter Stagis, 60, at their home in Leeds. He was sentenced to 14 years for murder.
25 May 2018: Christina Abbotts, 29, was found bludgeoned to death in her bed after failing to turn up at celebrations planned for her birthday. Zahid Naseem, 47, has been found guilty of her murder.
28 May 2018: Laura Mortimer, 31, and her 11-year-old daughter Ella Dalby, were stabbed to death by Christopher Boon, an ex-partner of Laura, at their home in Gloucestershire. Police said Boon had a history of violence and in 2010 he was handed a suspended sentence for attacking a former partner and her mother. He was sentenced to 29 years for double murder.
29 May 2018: Denise Rosser, 38, was found dead at home where she had been beaten to death, suffering catastrophic injuries. She had recently told friends that she was frightened to go home. Her partner, Simon Winston, 49, was convicted of her murder. Denise was repeatedly assessed as at ‘high risk’ of violence and abuse from Winston in the years preceding her death.
29 May 2018: Joanne Bishop, 39, died in hospital four days after her partner Shane Clarke, 52, stabbed her 29 times with a screwdriver, at their home in Milton Keynes. Clarke was jailed for a minimum term of 20 years for her murder.
31 May 2018: Jill Hibberd, 71, was stabbed 70 times at her home in Barnsley, during a burglary. Lee Fueleop, 40, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 35 years.
In May 2018, Mary Gregory, 94, died in hospital due to smoke inhalation after a fire at her home in Lancashire. In November 2021, her son’s stepson, Tiernan Danton, 21, was found guilty of her murder. He disabled the fire alarm, impeded her exit and started the fire.
1 June 2018: Andra Hilitanu, 28, suffered 80 sharp and blunt injuries, including a fatal neck wound, at her home in Neasden, north-west London. Her unborn child also died in the attack. Her boyfriend, Ioan Campeanu, 43, was convicted of murder and child destruction.
6 June 2018: Zofija Kaczan, 100, died in hospital after having her neck and cheek broken in a robbery at her home in Derby. Arthur Waszkiewicz, 39, was convicted of manslaughter and robbery.
8 June 2018: Tina Cantello, 49, was reported missing after she failed to turn up for work. She was found dead the next day with multiple stab wounds. Geoffrey Hutton, 38, had killed Tina, who was working as a debt collector, when she arrived at his home in Basildon, Essex, to collect a payment. Hutton was convicted of her murder.
9 June 2018: Marie Gibson, 35, was found dead at her home in Louth, Lincolnshire. Her boyfriend of two months, Shane Murphy, 27, beat her to death with a baseball bat and stabbed her in the throat with broken glass. He was sentenced to 20 years for her murder.
12 June 2018: Tracy Patsalides, 40, was found dead with head and neck injuries in a seafront shelter in Eastbourne. Wayne Marshall, 38, was convicted of her murder and sentenced to 14 years.
23 June 2018: Gita Suri, 56, was stabbed to death by another resident, Gary Davis, 50, at the supported housing they shared in Greenwich, London. Davis was found guilty of murder.
30 June 2018: Klarissa-Charlene Faith, 26, was found dead by police who had been called to her home in Harworth, Nottinghamshire. She had been strangled to death. Her partner, Stuart Hall, 47, was convicted of her murder.
July 2018: Anne Reid, 81, died after care-work Calum Knox syringed ‘liquid’ in to her mouth. Knox had been charged with attempted murder and neglect in relation to her death and Susan Reid below. The murder charge was later deleted, Knox was convicted of assault and was given a community service order. Knox was also found to have attacked another woman, Agnes Ferguson, 81, poking and prodding her ribs causing her to scream in pain.
July 2018: Susan Reid, 73, died after care-work Calum Knox syringed ‘liquid’ in to her mouth. Knox had been charged with attempted murder and neglect in relation to her death and Anne Reid above. The murder charges were found ‘not proven’.
1 July 2018: Shuren Ma, 72, was found with a critical head injury and died at the scene by police who had been called to a disturbance. Her partner, Zhizhang Shan, 74, attacked Shuren in their home in Woolwich, by striking her repeatedly over the head with a rolling pin and by stabbing her repeatedly in the chest and abdomen. Shan pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
4 July 2018: Judy Constant, 62, was found at a property in Marlborough Road, Islington. A post-mortem found she had suffered blunt force trauma. Her son, Darren Constant, 37, was arrested in July 2018 and released under investigation. In March 2021 he was charged with murder. He was remanded in custody and awaits trial.
6 July 2018: Samantha Toms, 47, was found dead at home in East Sussex. She had been smothered. Her partner Ralph Fairman, 50, was convicted of manslaughter by diminished responsibility and sentenced to a minimum of nine years.
7 July 2018: Lorna Myers, 54, was stabbed to death by her son, Malo Myers, 32, who was found guilty of manslaughter. Her 14-year-old son, who was also stabbed, survived the attack.
8 July 2018: Stela Marisabel Domador-Kuzma, 34, was stabbed to death by her housemate Ryan Thornton, 20, at the home they shared in Bournemouth. Thornton, who has also admitted charges of possessing indecent images of children, pleaded guilty to murder.
8 July 2018: Patricia Franks, 86, was killed through blunt force trauma and strangulation by her husband Lawrence Franks, 84, at their home in Stockport. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
8 July 2018: Dawn Sturgess, 44, was killed after applying the nerve agent novichok which had been discarded in a counterfeit perfume bottle. The UK Government believe it was the same military-grade substance used in an attack on a former Russian spy and are said the hold the Russian state responsible.
10 July 2018: Gina Ingles, 34, and her 4-year-old son, Milo, 4, died of smoke inhalation after a fire in their home in East Sussex. Her partner, 26, was injured and survived the fire. Jacob Barnard,32, and Andrew Milne,42, were found guilty of two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
10 July 2018: Joyce Burgess, 84, died of a heart attack in hospital 3 days after being assaulted by Johnny Brazil, 27, when he burgled her home in Surrey. He caused significant injuries to her arms, face and chest and admitted manslaughter in June 2019.
12 July 2018: Riasat Bi, 86, died of multiple stab wounds after she was attacked by Madni Ahmed, 20, in her home in Birmingham. Her 18-year-old grandson was also stabbed and survived the attack. Ahmed was convicted of murder, attempted murder, possession of an offensive weapon and affray. He was sentenced to 36 years.
12 July 2018: Katerina Makunova, 17, was killed during an argument with her ex-boyfriend, Oluwaseyi Dada, 21. Dada had a history of coercive and controlling behaviour towards Katerina and police had been involved on numerous occasions. Katerina died when she ‘fell’ onto a kitchen knife that was in her handbag. Dada was sentenced to two years and three months for manslaughter.
16 July 2018: Claire Wright, 38, was tied up and gagged by her partner Warren Coulton, 51, at a campsite in Wales. She died of asphyxiation in a supposed ‘sex-game gone wrong’. Coulton fled the scene, leaving Claire’s body to be found by cleaning and maintenance staff. He was found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence and sentenced to six years imprisonment.
19 July 2018: Lesley Davies, 81, died in hospital after being attacked in the street outside her home in Cornwall. She was pushed to the ground and stamped on by her partner, Brian Downie, 69. He was given an indefinite hospital order.
24 July 2018: Sheila Thomas, 69, was found dead with stab wounds at her home in South London. She had been bludgeoned with a piece of wood and stabbed by her husband, David Thomas, 73, at their home in Herne Hill, South London. Sheila had suffered years of abuse at the hands of David Thomas and she had told him she wanted to separate. He was convicted of murder.
26 July 2018: Lucy McHugh, 13, was found stabbed to death in woodland in Southampton. Stephen-Alan Nicholson, 24, was found guilty of three counts of rape and of Lucy’s murder. The trial heard that Nicholson murdered Lucy to prevent her exposing him as an abuser.
29 July 2018: Stephanie (aka Stevie) Packman 64, was killed by her husband Michael Packman, 66, at their home in Sittingbourne. He cut her throat and then tried to kill himself. He was given a 2-year suspended sentence.
July 2018: Anne Reid, 81, died after care-work Calum Knox syringed ‘liquid’ in to her mouth. Knox had been charged with attempted murder and neglect in relation to her death and Susan Reid below. Knox is also facing charges in relation to other patients.
July 2018: Susan Reid, 73, died after care-work Calum Knox syringed ‘liquid’ in to her mouth. Knox had been charged with attempted murder and neglect in relation to her death and Anne Reid above. Knox is also facing charges in relation to other patients.

27 July 2018: Sam Eastwood, 28, was found dead in a shallow grave in Staffordshire eight days after being strangled by her partner Michael Stirling, 32. Stirling was given a life sentence for murder.
2 August 2018: Karen Peter, 50, was found dead after a house fire in Dagenham, East London. Her husband, Thomas Peter, 50, strangled Karen and then set alight to her body in a locked bedroom. Thomas Peter subjected Karen to violence and abuse throughout the marriage. He was found guilty of murder and arson with intent to endanger life.
3 August 2018: Kelly Franklin, 29, was stabbed to death in the street in what police have described as a ‘targeted attack’. Her ex-partner, Torbjorn (Ian) Kettlewell, 30, was convicted of murder and jailed for 29 years. His partner, Julie Wass, was convicted of manslaughter.
6 August 2018: Katherine (Katie) Kemp, 31, was found stabbed to death after her husband Thomas Kemp, 32, jumped out of a window. Thomas Kemp had stabbed Katherine 28 times at the flat they shared in Ipswich.
6 August 2018: Tracey Evans, 52, was found dead in her flat in Leicestershire. Her partner, Jeremy Clarke, 54, had slit her throat from ‘ear-to-ear’. Clarke had subjected Tracey to physical, emotional and financial abuse throughout the relationship. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison for murder.
7 August 2018: Marie Walker, 61, was found dead by the police in her home Edinburgh after neighbours raised concerns. She was strangled to death by her partner Robert Douglas, 62. Douglas was convicted of her murder and must serve at least 16 years in prison.

15 August 2018: Simonne Kerr, 31, was stabbed 70 times by Desmond Sylva, 40, at his flat in Clapham, south London. Sylva, who has a history of violence and abuse against women, must serve a minimum of 21 years after he was convicted of murder.
15 August 2018: Barbara Davison, 66, was found dead at her home in Redcar. She had been strangled by her partner Paul Plunkett, 61. In 1995, Plunket served a three-year sentence for strangling his partner, Jackie Aspery, to death. He was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years Barbara’s murder.
22 August 2018: Carole Harrison, 73, was found dead after a fire at her house in South West London. Though cause of death could not be established, there was evidence that Carole had been assaulted. William Kydd, 54, who was known to the victim, was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum tariff of 30 years in prison.
26 August 2018: Sharon Perrett, 37, was found dead at her home in Dorset. A post-mortem revealed she had sustained multiple impact injuries to her head, neck, chest and limbs. She had 15 fractured ribs and more than 80 area of external bruising and abrasions. Her partner Daniel O’Malley-Keyes, 30, is serving an 18-year sentence for murder.
27 August 2018: Raneem Oudeh, 22, was stabbed to death along with her mother, Khaola Saleem, 49, outside Khaola’s home in Solihull. Janbaz Tarin, 21, was sentenced to a minimum of 32 years double-murder. Raneem had been trying to end her relationship with Tarin since April that year.
27 August 2018: Khaola Saleem, 22, was stabbed to death along with her daughter, Raneem Oudeh, 22, outside her home in Solihull. Janbaz Tarin, 21, was sentenced to a minimum of 32 years double-murder. Raneem had been trying to end her relationship with Tarin since April that year.
August 2018: Eileen Baxter, 75, died of multiple organ failure following the puncture of her bowl caused by a vaginal mesh implant. The insufficiently tested and poorly regulated plastic mesh devices have been called the greatest health scandal since Thalidomide. Eileen was not killed by a violent man. Women’s pain is routinely ignored and minimised and this dangerous surgery is facing increased scrutiny.
28 August 2018: Lisa Butler, 48, was stabbed to death by her uncle Richard Butler, 66, at a caravan park in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. Butler killed himself at the scene.
29 August 2018: Laura Harrison, 36, was beaten, strangled, and stabbed once in the forehead and 17 times in the buttocks by her boyfriend Jonathon Robinson, 32, at his home in Middlesbrough. Robinson had been violent and abusive to Laura throughout the relationship. He was sentenced to 21 years for murder.
1 September 2018: Celia Levitt, 68, was stabbed with a kitting needle and strangled by her son, Barry Levitt, 36, at his home in Bromley, south London. He was given an indefinite hospital order for manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
2 September 2018: Julie Owens, 52, died in hospital 11 days after being seriously assaulted, by her son John Owens, 30, at her home in Liverpool. John Owens was sentenced to four and a half years for manslaughter.
5 September 2018: Joan Hoggett, 62, was stabbed multiple times whilst at work in a local shop in Fulwell, Sunderland. Ethan Mountain, 19, pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
6 September 2018: Memunatu Warne, 43, died of smoke inhalation after a masked man riding a moped threw a petrol bomb through a window of the home of a relative whom she was visiting in Woolwich, south-east London. William Smith, 26, and Elliot Robinson, 22, were found guilty of murder and were sentenced to 32 years and 31 years respectively.
6 September 2018: Kylie Dembrey, 28, died following an attack at her home in Berkshire in which she was strangled and then stabbed by her partner Mark Sinclair, 30. Sinclair was violent and abusive towards Kylie throughout their 12-year relationship and has at least five previous convictions related to domestic violence. He was convicted of murder.
9 September 2018: Susan Gyde, 52, was found by police when they were called to attend to a serious assault at the home she shared with her husband, Philip Gyde, 58, in Burton, Staffordshire. She was pronounced dead later in hospital. She had been strangled by Philip Gyde, who was convicted of her murder.
11 September 2018: Yvonne Robinson, 60, died at her home in Cumbria. A post mortem revealed that the cause of her death was blunt chest trauma. She had 15 rib fractures and was suffering from neglect. Her partner, Colin Sharples was arrested after her death but died before the post mortem was produced. Assistant coroner Dr Nicholas Shaw said had he not died ‘I have no doubt he would have been arrested and prosecuted in relation to Yvonne’s death and he might well have been charged with her murder.’ There was a history of him abusing her.
20 September 2018: Kay Richardson, 49, was killed at her home in Sunderland by her husband Alan Martin, 53, who then killed himself. Martin, who had been questioned by police on suspicion of rape in the days before the killing, repeatedly hit Kay Richardson over the head with a hammer before strangling her with an electric cable. Kay had repeatedly reported Martin to the police and he had been served with an injunction one day before he killed her.
21 September 2018: Cristina Magda-Calancea, 26, was stabbed to death, Norfolk, at her home in Kings Lynn. Her ex-partner, Gediminas Jasinskas, 29, hid in Cristina’s garage as he waited for her to finish work, before stabbing her 25 times. Jasinskas was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum of 20 years.
21 September 2018: Frances Hubbard, 81, was killed after her husband, Michael Hubbard, 81, repeatedly stabbed her in the head with two kitchen knives, at their home in Norfolk. A trial of facts hearing found that Michael Hubbard had caused her death and he was detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act.
23 September 2018: Sandra Zmijan, 32, was found dead in Wojciech Tadewicz’s, 26, back garden in Hayes, west London. Tadewicz had repeatedly struck Sandra with a hammer a day after she told him they could ‘only ever be friends’. He was jailed for a minimum of 22 years for murder.
25 September 2018: Margaret Harris, 78, and her daughter Sharon Harris, 55, were stabbed to death by their neighbour, Jack Ralph, 28, at their home in Hadlow, Kent. Margaret’s husband was also stabbed in the attack and survived. Ralph was found guilty of two counts of manslaughter by diminished responsibility and one of attempted murder.
25 September 2018: Sharon Harris, 55, and her mother Margaret Harris, 78, were stabbed to death by their neighbour, Jack Ralph, 28, at their home in Hadlow, Kent. Her father, David Harris, survived the attack with serious injuries.
26 September 2018: Jeanna Maher, 51, was bound with a ligature at her wrists and ankles and repeatedly hit on the head and a body with an unknown implement at a house in Drumchapel, Glasgow. Her husband Peter Maher, 57 at the time of her death, was initially found unfit to plea and was detained in a secure hospital. He has since been charged with Jeanna Maher’s murder and is awaiting a criminal trial.
30 September 2018: Glenda Jackson, 44, was beaten and stabbed to death by her neighbours, Nicholas Curtis, 32, and Stuart Curtis, 31, on the street outside her home in Merseyside. Previously, Glenda had reported to police that she had been subject to homophobic abuse perpetrated by a group the men were connected to. The brothers were found guilty of murder.
1 October 2018: Avan Najmadeen, 32, was stabbed 50 times by her husband, Dana Abdullah, 35, at her home in Stoke-on-Trent. The court heard that Avan had moved several times because she did not want Abdullah to know where she was living. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum term of 18 years and eight months.
5 October 2018: Claire Turnbull, 36, was hit eight times on the back of her head with a claw hammer by Aaron Donald, 28, in a flat he shared with his girlfriend in Blairhall, West Fife. Donald did not know Claire at the time of the attack. The court heard that Donald had 50 previous convictions, including seven for violence.
8 October 2018: Natalie Saunders, 33, was found dead at her home in Cleveland. There were 85 separate sites of injury on her body – with a minimum of three blows found to her face, 13 to her head and neck, 23 to her torso, and 25 to her lower limbs. Her boyfriend Stephen Charlton, 24, was found guilty of her murder.
9 October 2018: Sarah Wellgreen, 47, was last seen alive on 9 October 2018. Her former partner, Ben Lacomba, 38, was convicted of her murder. The trial heard that Lacomba killed and disposed of Sarah’s body after she sought to buy him out of the home they shared in Kent, despite having separated in 2014. Her body has never been found.
22 October 2018: Nazia Begum Ali, 25, was found dead at her home in Bow, east London. A trial heard that her husband, Mohammed Anhar Ali, 32, had waited inside a cupboard for up to 10 hours for her to return, before beating and strangling her to death. The judge described Anhar Ali as ‘manipulative and overbearing’ towards Nazia and that his conduct was fuelled by a failure to accept that she was ‘entitled to leave him, entitled to divorce him and entitled to live her own life’.
24 October 2018: Teresa Garner, 46, died of significant head injuries from severe blunt force trauma with a hammer at the home she shared with her husband, John Garner, in North Wales. John Garner, 51, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 22 years. Three women gave evidence at the trial and stated that Garner was violent and abusive during their relationships.
28 October 2018: Lynn Forde, 35, was found dead after her partner Phil Osborne, 36, called the police and told them that he had killed her before killing himself 30 miles away.
29 October 2018: Mavis Bran, 69, died in hospital of multiple organ failure after developing sepsis and hypothermia after suffering severe burns in the chip shop she owned with her husband in Carmarthenshire. Geoff Bran, 70, her husband, was charged with and later cleared of her murder though admitted that he continued to serve customers in the chip shop rather than seek medical assistance. Mavis had previously confided in a friend that he was abusive to her.
30 October 2018: Sheena Jackson, 58 was found dead in the home she shared with her husband, Alexander Jackson, 65, in Stirling. Police have confirmed that her death was murder. Her husband was found seriously unwell inside the property and died later. It is believed Alexander Jackson killed Sheena and then took his own life.
2 November 2018: Anne Marie Pomphret, 49, was found dead at the stables she owned in Warrington having suffered serious head injuries. Her husband David Pompthret, 50, was charged with her murder in April 2019 and found guilty in October 2019. He had battered her to death with a crowbar
3 November 2018: Renata Poncova, 33, was pushed out of an 8th floor window by her boyfriend Tony Taylor, 33, at the flat they shared in Southwark, south-London. Taylor then jumped from the window. An inquest found that Renata was unlawfully killed and Taylor died as a result of suicide.
6 November 2018: Fiona McDonald, 44, was stabbed 47 times by her neighbour, William Finlay, at her home in Falkirk. Finlay, 56, admitted murder and was sentenced to at least 17 years.
8 Nov 2018: Natalie Smith, 34, stabbed by her ex-partner, Craig Stewart, and was found at her home in Bristol with life threatening injuries. She died in hospital. Craig Stewart, 36, died at the scene from self-inflicted stab wounds.
12 November 2018: Katarzyna (Kasia) Paszek, 39, died in hospital with a blunt force head injury. An inquest heard that she had been subjected to domestic abuse and had been receiving help from the West Wales Domestic Abuse Service for a year prior to her death. Four men were initially arrested in relation to her death. The inquest was informed by police that there were “significant inconsistencies” in the statements surrounding the incident. which made it impossible to establish what happened or what caused her death. The coroner recorded a verdict of death by misadventure.
12 November 2018: Tasneem Sheikh was hit over the head five times with a vase at the home she shared with her husband, Naseer Khan, 66, in Wandsworth, south London. Khan was found guilty of manslaughter by diminished responsibility and given an indefinite hospital order.
12 November 2018: Sana Muhammad, 35, was shot in the stomach with a crossbow. She was pronounced dead by doctors, who were able to deliver the baby she was carrying. Her ex-husband, Ramanodge Unmathallegadoo, 50, hid in the shed in Sana’s garden, at her home in Ilford, armed with two crossbows, bolts, a knife, duct tape, cables ties and a hammer. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to a minimum of 33 years.
13 November 2018: Pauline Kilkenny, 59, was found dead at her home in County Fermanagh after concerns were raised when she didn’t turn up at work. Joseph Dolan, 28, who was lodging with Pauline at the time, stabbed her 28 times.
16 November 2018: Maureen Watkins, 75, died from multiple stab wounds by her son, Edward Watkins, 55, at their home in Peckham, south-east London. Watkins was detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act.
16 November 2018: Valerie Kneale, 75, was in hospital in a stoke unit in Blackpool. She died of a haemorrhage caused by a ‘non-medical related internal injury’. The post-mortem examination was one of a number carried out as part of an investigation into allegations of mistreatment and neglect on the hospital’s stroke unit. Investigating officers had received information about other allegations of serious sexual assaults against two patients, as well as the sexual assault of a healthcare professional working on the stroke unit. A healthcare professional was arrested under suspicion of rape and murder in 2021.
17 November 2018: Jacqueline Allen, 65, died when her daughter’s home in Kent was set alight, shortly after warning the police that her daughter’s ex-partner was dangerous. Her daughter’s ex-partner, Simon Childs, 51, was found guilty of the murder of Jacqueline and attempted murder of her 12-year-old granddaughter.
24 November 2018: Samantha Gosney, 29, was stabbed to death in her home in Merseyside by her partner Adam Brettle, 23. The court heard that Brettle was ‘controlling and jealous’ and that he stabbed Samantha – who suffered 29 wounds in the attack – when she made plans to attend her grandmother’s funeral.
25 November 2018: Karen Cleary-Brown, 44, went missing in Jamaica. She was found dead on 3rd December. Shelden Hewitt, 32, who was working on her property confessed to her murder.
27 November 2018: Lorraine Matos-Sanchez, 27, died of compression to her neck inflicted by her husband Jesus Matos-Sanchez, 31, at their home in Leicestershire. He then killed himself. A review into Lorraine’s killing found that she had previously text a friend stating she thought he was going to kill her.
28 November 2018: Kelly Worgan, 33, was strangled to death by her husband George Worgan, 35, at their home in Bristol. He was given a life sentence, to serve minimum term of 12 and a half years.
29 November 2018: Barbara Findlay, 58 was from Kennington, S. London but had lived in Jamaica for the last 5 years. She was reported missing on 29 November. She was found dead on 5 December.
1 December 2018: Grace Millane, 22, was from Essex. She went missing on 1st December whilst travelling in New Zealand. She was found dead on 9 December. Jesse Kempson, 28, was convicted of her murder. In the time since his conviction, Kempson was convicted of a further eight charges relating to violence against women, including using a knife against a woman.
4 December2018: Maureen Whale, 77, collapsed on the phone when calling the police while her house was being burgled by two males. Post-mortem tests found she died from coronary heart disease brought on by the stress of the incident. The men have not been found.
5 December 2018: Sally Cavender, 55, was taken to hospital critically injured but died shortly after. Sally was strangled and beaten by her partner, Robert Simpson-Scott, in his home in Cambridge. He was found guilty of her murder.
10 December 2018: June Knight, 79, died at a care home in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex. Her son, Robert Knight, 52, threw her from a first-floor balcony causing ‘catastrophic’ head injuries. Knight was convicted of manslaughter and given a suspended sentence.
13 December 2018, Keely McGrath, 30, was beaten and stabbed to death by her partner, Anthony Davis, at their home in Derbyshire. Davis, 39, was convicted of murder and must serve at least 24 years in prison.
14 December 2018: Poppy Devey-Waterhouse, 24, sustained more than 100 injuries when her ex-boyfriend, Joe Atkinson, 25, attacked her with a knife at their home in Yorkshire. Poppy suffered 70 knife injuries. The court heard that Atkinson failed to accept the relationship was over. He was convicted of murder.
17 December 2018: Sheila Small, 73, was beaten to death with a rolling pin and walking stick by her husband Edward Small, 76 at their home in Bradford. Prosecutor David Brooke QC said she had wounds to the top of her head that had split the skin to the skull. She had up to 26 separate injuries to her face, extensive bruising to her body and all four limbs, a shattered shoulder blade, a broken collar bone and fractured ribs. Her right arm was “absolutely covered in bruises” and the index finger was broken.
19 December 2018: Lana-Jayne Owen, 46, was strangled to death in her home in Rhondda Cynon Taff. Her partner Philip Andrews, 51, was charged with her murder and died of a terminal illness before facing trial. It is believed he strangled Lana with a length of cord. The coroner recorded a conclusion of unlawful killing.
22 December 2018: Marissa Aldrich, 29, was drowned in a balancing pond in Cambridgeshire, by her boyfriend Robert McWhir, 25. McWhir had a history of coercive and controlling behaviour. Just before the attack he had been accusing Marissa of seeing other men.
22 December 2018: Joanne Gallacher, 33, was stabbed 57 times by her partner, James Kennedy, 31, at his home in Lanarkshire.
23 December 2018: Carole Forth, 56, was strangled to death by her partner, Edward Scott, 62, at their home in Hull. He was found guilty of manslaughter.
25 December 2018: Parwin Quriashi, 19, was found with serious injuries caused by multiple stab wounds. She had been stabbed 38 times by her husband, Mohammad Qureshi, 27, at their home in Kent. He was sentenced to 16 years for murder.
26 December 2018: Angela Mittal, 41 was stabbed 59 times by her husband, Laurens Brand, 47, shortly after speaking to a solicitor about divorce. In a recording of a 999-call played to court, Brand said: ‘She was going to leave me… I couldn’t let that happen’.
26 December 2018: Alena Grlakova, 38, was found dead, naked in stream, in Rotherham, in April 2019 after having last been seen alive on boxing day 2018. She had been strangled and her body was covered In grit and stone. Gary Allen, 47, was found guilty of her murder.
26 December 2018: Joy Morgan, 21 was last seen alive at a church celebration in London. Joy’s body was found months later in Hertfordshire woodland. The cause of death could not be established but it is thought she may have been given drugs without her knowledge. An acquaintance, Ajibola Shogbamimu, 40, was found guilty of her murder.
30 December 2018: June Jones, 33, also known as Katie, was found dead at her home in West Bromwich after being reported missing on 26 December. She was found in the bath and wrapped in a rug with a knife placed on top of her body. It is believed she had been killed around 10^th Her ex-boyfriend, Michael Foran, 32, is serving a life sentence for murder.
30 December 2018: Linda Jane McArity, 50, was found strangled in her home. Ian Kerr, 36, was found guilty of her murder.

The Attack in Manchester was an Attack on Women and Girls

May 25, 2017 by Karen Ingala Smith

Manchester 22

We now know the names of the 22 people confirmed dead in the attack in Manchester, and we know the 17 of them were women and girls. Whilst not to deny or denigrate the lives of the 5 men that were also taken, it is essential that we view the attack as an attack on women. The attacker chose an event, an Ariana Grande concert, with a fan base in which girls – preteen and teenage – dominate.

Daesh have claimed responsibility and so the attack is rightly framed in the context of religious extremism. The patriarchal oppression of women by men is at the heart of this ideology, and in that respect Daesh is not alone. Inequality between women and men and men’s violence against women go hand-in-hand the world over. It is estimated that across the globe 66,000 women and girls are killed violently every year . Generally those countries with the highest homicide rates are those with the highest rates of fatal violence against women and girls; but other factors are at play too, countries with higher levels of sex inequality also have high rates of men’s violence against women and girls. The UK is no exception, this year, even before the attack in Manchester, at least 37 UK women had been killed by men. Links between men who perpetrate violence against women and terrorism are now being identified; and mass killers, including school shooters, are almost always male.

Gender is a hierarchy, the ideals of masculinity and femininity are critical tools in maintaining the oppression of women by men, in the creation of men’s violence against women and the conditions that support and enable it. We cannot afford to fail to identify and name patriarchy as an ideology underpinning violence and we cannot afford to fail to name male violence against women in the Manchester attack. If we want to end men’s violence against women and girls we will have to dismantle the structures that support inequality between women and men, without this almost any intervention that we might make will have little impact.

The prevent agenda, one of the 4 strands of the UK governments counter-terrorism strategy, has been condemned as toxic and anti-Muslim, as reinforcing rather than healing mistrust, but cultural relativism is not the solution. If we want to tackle terrorism, we need to understand and acknowledge that structural inequalities that create the conditions for violent hatred – be they grounded in patriarchy– or imperialism or capitalism – are critical and that solutions, if they are to have any impact, need to be equally ambitious. We also need to make sure our definition of terrorism includes acts of violence perpetrated by those claiming to be motivated by the aims of ideologies held, or perceived to be held, by populations who are mainly white. Religion is one of the tools of ideology. We need to push for a secular state, that doesn’t have to be about the absence of religion from the lives of those who choose it, but it does mean the separation of religion and the state. Of course if we are to learn from the mistakes of imperialism, this means that the West cannot impose secularism on the Global South. But we can redouble our efforts to fight for universal Human Rights for all, and human rights fully encompass women’s rights. The right to life, the right to freedom from torture, the right to freedom from slavery: men’s violence against women and more broadly the oppression of women is an international human rights crisis.

Yes, now is the time for unity – and in that unity we should seek our connections to those killed and harmed in the name of violent and oppressive ideologies across the world. We must be unified in our fight to identify, name and end all forms of men’s violence against women and girls and also to end hierarchies between women and girls. Whether international terrorism or domestic terrorism, men’s violence against women and girls is used to control, disempower and degrade women and girls. The attack in Manchester was an attack on women and girls, on our liberty, our safety, our lives. The response to terrorism must always include the rights of women.

In memory of

Angelica Klis, 40

Georgina Callendar, 18

Saffie Roussos, 8

Kelly Brewster , 32

Olivia Campbell, 15

Alison Howe,45

Lisa Lees, 47

Jane Tweddle-Taylor, 51

Megan Hurley, 15

Nell Jones, 14

Michelle Kiss, 45

Sorrell Leczkowski, 14

Chloe Rutherford, 17

Eilidh Macleod, 14

Wendy Fawell, 50

Courtney Boyle, 19

Elaine McIver,43

And also,

Martyn Hett, 29

Marcin Klis, 42

John Atkinson, 28

Liam Curry, 19

Philip Tron, 32

2017

February 12, 2017 by Karen Ingala Smith

138 women

2017

2017: At least 151 UK women killed by men, or where a man is the principal suspect.150 women in 365 days is one woman dead every 2.4 days.

7 January 2017: Nicola Beck, 52, was found dead along with her husband Michael Beck, 62. Police have described their deaths as ‘domestic related murder and suicide.’
8 January 2017: Kerri McCauley, 32, was found dead. A post-mortem was inconclusive but Norfolk Police said there was evidence that Kerri was subjected to a severe blunt force assault. Her former partner, Joe Storey, 26, has been charged with her murder.
10 January 2017: Eulin Hastings, 74, was killed in a house fire. A 26-year-old man was arrested and bailed.
11 January 2017: Victoria Shorrock, 45, was found dead having suffered ‘a number of injuries’. Lee Grime, 35, had been charged with her murder but the charge was changed to assault when the cause of death could not be verified. Det Insp Tim McDermott said: “Even though we can’t be sure exactly what happened in the hours before she died, what is clear is Grime assaulted her, with her death following at some point afterwards. Victoria was a vulnerable woman who Grime took advantage of. He showed himself to be a dangerous and manipulative individual.” Grimes was jailed for 16 months.
11 Jan 2017: Kirby Norden (also known as Kirsty), 32, was last seen alive. Her body was found in may in the home she shared with her boyfriend Dean Lowe, 33. Ahe has been charged with her murder.
16 January 2017: Leone Weeks, 16, was found stabbed to death on a footbath close to her home. 18-year-old Shea Heeley, has been charged with her murder.
16 January 2017: Kiran Daudia, 46, ‘s remains were found in a suitcase by a member of the public. Her 50-year-old ex-husband, Ashwin Daudia, has been charged with her murder.
18 January 2017: Kulwinder Kaur, 40, was killed by a stab wound to her neck. Her husband, Azad Singh, 46, has been charged with her murder.
19 January 2017: Anne Forneaux, 70, was found dead at home and is believed to have been killed by her husband, Edward Forneaux, 74, who is thought to have killed himself by driving in to a tree.
20 January 2017: Anita Downey, 51, is thought to have been stabbed to death. David Lymess, 51, has been charged with her murder.
28 January 2017: Chrissy Kendall, 46, was found dead with multipole stab wounds. Her husband James Neary, 46, has been charged with her murder.
30 January 2017: Gillian Zvomuya, 42, also known as Nyasha Kahari, dies from head injuries and also suffered injuries from a ‘bladed item’. Her husband Norbery Chikerema, 42, has been charged with her murder.
3 February 2017: Amandeep Kaur, 35, was found dead with significant injuries. Baldeep Singh, 38, has been charged with her murder.
6 February 2017: Tina Billingham, 54, was taken to a doctor’s surgery with stab wounds but later died in hospital. Her partner Ronald Cook, 54, has been charged with her murder.
11 February 2017: Hannah Dorans, 21, was found dead. Frazer Neil, 23, has been charged in relation to her death.
11 February 2017: Catherine Kelly, 71, was killed in a fire which was thought to have been started deliberately.
11 February 2017: Hang Yin Leung, 64, was killed when a group of men posing as cold callers entered and robbed her home.
13 February 2017: Karina Batista, 40, was found dead with multiple injuries to her upper body. Jaici Rocha, 36, has been charged with her murder.
15 February 2017: Humara Khan, 42, was found to have a serious head injury when police were called to her home. She later died in hospital. Her husband Jamal Khan, 52, has been charged with her murder.
19 February 2017: Hazel Wilson Briant, 27, was stabbed to death by her partner Olumide Orimoloye, 42, who also killed himself.
19 February 2017: Margaret Stenning, 79, was stabbed to death. Her husband, Ronald Stenning, who claimed she slit her own throat, has been charged with her murder.
22 February 2017: Avis Addison, 88, was found dead at home after police were called to the property. Her husband Douglas Addison, 88, has been charged with her murder.
25 February 2017: Beverly Hudson, 42, died in hospital 2 days after having been stabbed 20 times in the neck, chest and abdomen as well as her arms, hands and back by her partner Mark Minott, 41, who used a second knife after the first one broke.
26 February 2016: Julie McCash, 43, was stabbed to death at a vigil being held for her missing nephew. Robert Stratton, 42, has been charged with her murder.
26 February 2017: Sarah Pitkin, 58, is believed to have been stabbed to death by her husband Richard Pitkin, , 65, who then hanged himself.
28 February 2017: Lea Adri-Soejoko, 80, was found dead in an allotment lock-up store. She had been strangled. Rahim Mohammadi, 40, has been charged with her murder.
In February 2015, Justene Reece, 46, killed herself by hanging following a period of sustained stalking and coercive control. In a landmark legal case, Nicolas Allen, who had formerly been Justene’s partner, admitted manslaughter.
8 March 2017: Anne-Marie James, 33, was stabbed to death by her brother Melvin James,36, who then killed himself. He also badly injured their mother.
13 March 2017: Sabrina Mullings, 38, was stabbed to death. Her partner Ivan Griffin, 23, has been charged with her murder.
17 March 2017: Sheila Morgan, 72, died of necrotising fasciitis from an infected stab wound after her and her husband were attacked by Keiran Wathan, 24, who had broken in to their home.
22 March 2017: Aysha Frade, 43, was killed when Adrian Ajao/Elms, also known as Khalid Massod, drove a car in to pedestrians in a terrorist attack in London.
25 March 2017: Tracey Wilkinson, 50, and her son Pierce, 13, were stabbed to death by Aaron Bailey who was known to the family. Her husband was also badly hurt in the attack.
25 March 2017: Kanwal/Bernice Williams was last seen alive. Her body was found on 9^th of April, two days after the discovery of the body of her husband Lawrence Williams, 50. He is thought to have killed himself.
1 April 2017: Elaine Blane, 87, died after being attacked by a man she believed was a window cleaner 20 3^rd He struck her on the head multiple times, leaving her with severe bruising, 2 broken ribs and a broken vertebrae. She spent 8 weeks in hospital and died at home of a blood clot to the lung, caused by the attack, on the day she went home. She described her male attacker. Her has not been found.
4 April 2017: Ana Maria Pereira De Sousa Rebelo, 51, was found dead, it is thought through compression to her neck. 7 months later her husband Alfredo Da Costa Rebelo was charged with her murder.
6 April 2017: Andreea Christea, 31, died after falling in to the river Thames when Adrian Ajao/Elms, also known as Khalid Massod, drove a car in to pedestrians in a terrorist attack in London on 22 March.
9 April 2017: Vicki Hull, 31, was found strangled. Mark Mahoney, 31, has been charged with her murder.
14 April 2017: Hannah Bladon, 20, a student from Derby , was stabbed to death in Jerusalem by Jamil Tamimi, 57.
17 April 2017: Carolyn Hill, 51, died of a head injury. Skye Page, 37, has been charged with her murder.
19 April 2017: Karina Evemy, 19, died in hospital of injuries sustained on 13^th Her boyfriend Dylan Harries, 21, had previously been charged with attempted murder.
Between 16 April and May 2017: Megan Bills, 17, was killed. She was found decomposing and wrapped in cling film in May. Ashley Foster, 24, was initially charged with preventing a proper burial and later charged with her murder.
4 May 2017: Karolina Chwiluk, 20, died after being stabbed in an incident in which two other people were injured. Grzesiek Kosiec, 23, said to have been her boyfriend, has been chared with her murder and two counts of GBH.
7 May 2017: Jane Sherratt, 60, died in hospital 17 weeks after being battered over the dead with a dumbbell as she slept by her husband Paul Sherratt, 57.
7 May 20107: Tracy Kearns, 43, was strangled and smothered in a sustained and prolonged attack in which she suffered 40 separate injuries by her partner Anthony Bird. After he had killed her, her cut her clothes off, wrapped her naked body in plastic and stuck her in a tree/wendy house, which he had previously made for the children.
14 May 2017: Megan Bannister, 16, was found dead in a car after a collision. She did not have injuries consistent with a crash. A pathologist has informed the court that she either died of strangulation or an MDMA overdose or a mixture of both. Megan’s blood had 10 times the MDMA of Jason Burder, 28 and Adam King, 28 who were also in the car. Postmortem tests showed Burder’s semen inside and on Megan, as well as under Adam King’s fingernails. Burder and King had been calling ‘escorts’ as they drove around with Megan dead or dying in the car. Burder’s former partner told the court that he was violent and aggressive when he used drugs and put his hands round her neck during sex. Both were found not guilty of the manslaughter of Megan.
14 May 2017: Sinead Wooding, 26, was stabbed and bludgeoned with a claw hammer before her burnt body was found in woodland. Her husband Akshar Ali, 27, and his friend Yasmin Ahmed, 27, are currently on trial in relation to her death. (Nov 2017)
15 May 2017: Concepta Leonard, 51, was stabbed to death by her ex-partner Peadar Phair, who and killed himself and tried to kill her son.

On the evening of 22 May, 17 women and girls and 5 men were killed in an attack in Manchester. They were

Angelica Klis, 40
Georgina Callendar, 18
Kelly Brewster, 32
Olivia Campbell, 10
Alison Howe, 45
Lisa Lees, 47
Jane Tweddle-Taylor, 51
Megan Hurley, 15
Nell Jones, 14
Michelle Kiss, 45
Sorrell Leczkowski, 14
Chloe Rutherford, 17
Eilidh Macleod, 14
Wendy Fawell, 50
Courtney Boyle, 19
Elaine McIver, 43

Saffie Roussos, 8*

23 May 2017: Gemma Leeming, 30, was found strangled. Craig O’Sullivan, 39, has been charged with her murder.
25 May 2017: Emma Day, 33, was stabbed to death. Her ex-partner, Mark Morris, 39, has been charged with her murder.
26 May 2017: Mohanna Abdhua, 20, also known as Montana, was shot dead in what appears to have been crossfire of a ‘gangland shooting’. Two men have been arrested and bailed.
27 May 2017: Marjorie Cawdrey and her husband Michael, both 83, were stabbed to death. A 40-year-ond man has been charged in relation to their murders.
28 May 2017: Sobhia Khan, 37 was found dead. Her husband Ataul Mustafa, 35, has been charged with her murder.
29 May 2017: Romina Kalachi, 32, was found stabbed to death in London.
30 May 2017: Arena Saeed, 30 and her two children Shadia, 6 and Rami, 4 were killed in Liverpool. Her husband (their father) Sami Salem, 30, has been charged in relation to their deaths.
2 June 2017: Alyson Watt, 52, was stabbed to death and her 16-year-old son was also attacked. Her former partner Gary Brown, 54, has been charged.

3 June 2017: 8 people were killed in a terror attack in London by Khuram Shazad Butt, 27; Rachid Redouane, 30; Youssef Zaghba, 22. They included

8 June 2017: Sarah Jeffrey, 48, was strangled. Her husband Christopher Jeffrey, 51, has been charged with her murder.
9 June 2017: Karen Young, 47, was found dead in Allan Doherty’s flat. He has been charged with culpable homicide.
13 June 2017: Jean Chapman, 81, was killed by blunt force trauma to the head. Her 71-year-old husband John Chapman, has been charged with murder.
12 June 2017: Janice Griffiths, 59, died in hospital 2 days after being subjected to a violent attack. A 22-year-old man has been held under the Mental Health Act in relation to her death.
14 June 2017: Joanne Rand, 47, dies after sustaining chemical burns on 3 June from a substance in a bottle that was kicked during ‘an altercation’. Xeneral Webster has been charged with attempted GBH.
17 June 2017: Dionne Clark, 27, was found dead. Dominic Wallis, 28, and Elizabeth Ellis, 19, have been charged in relation to her murder.
18 June 2017: Ellen Higginbottom, 18, was killed through multiple wounds to her neck. Mark Steven Buckley, 51, has been charged with her murder.
27 June 2017: Julie Parkin, 39, was stabbed to death. Adam Parkin, 35, has been charged with her murder.
29 June 2017: Molly McLaren, 23, was killed by her throat being slit. Her ex-boyfriend, Joshua Stimpson, 25, has been charged with her murder.
3 July 2017: Jane Mathew, 62, was bludgeoned to death with a hammer by her husband Francis Mathew, 61. The couple were from the UK and lived in Dubai.
6 July 2017: Ilona Czuper, 63, was stabbed and slashed in the throat more than 60 times and beaten over the head by what what was thought most likely to be a paving slab by her grandson Kordian Filmanowicz, 23. He also smashed the skulls of her pet cat and dog.
9 July 2017: Vera Savage, 89, was stabbed to death. Police believe her son John Savage, 54, killed her and then himself.
10 July 2019: Janice Farman, 47, from Clydebank, had lived and worked in Mauritius since 2004. She died of asphyxiation after being attacked by masked robbers Kamlesh Mansing, 27, and Anish Soneea, 20, on 6 July 2017. They were jailed for 33 and 23 years respectively. A third suspect, Ravish Rao Fakhoo, is claiming a reduction in his charge and will face a separate trial.
19 July 2017: Celine Dookhran, 19, was kidnapped, raped, had her throat cut and her body was placed in a freezer. Majahid Arshid, 33, has been charged.
20 July 2017: Vanessa James, 24 was stabbed in the neck and abdomen. Tre Cameron, 21, has been charged with her murder.
21 July 2017: Florina Pastina, 36, was suffered head injuries as a result of being bludgeoned in the head with a hammer. Lucian Stinci, 34, has been charged with her murder.
21 July 2017: Olivia Kray, 19, was strangled. Her father, Richard Kray. 63 has been charged with her murder and the attempted murder of another woman.
25 July 2017: Natividad Nituan, 70, was stabbed and strangled by her partner Raymond Page, 64, in July 2017. She had knife wounds on her hands where she had tried to defend herself and blunt force injuries to her head and face.
29 July 2017: Farnaz Ali, 49, was killed in what has been described as a ‘sustained assault’ . Danny Williams, 26, has been charged with her murder.
31 July 2017: Elizabeth (Betty) Jordan, 53, was found seriously injured and died later in hospital. Her husband, Paul Jordan, 54, has been charged with her murder.
3 August 2017: Leanne Collopy, 25, was found in a burning house with her 2-year-old daughter. She died of stab wounds and burns. Saleem Said, 39, has been charged with her murder, the attempted murder of the two year old girl and arson with intent to endanger life
5 August 2017: Rikki Lander, 26, was found dead at home. Her husband Paul Lander was found hanged. Police said that ‘It’s clear a sustained attack had taken place towards Rikki.’
6 August 2017: Alex Stuart, 22, was found with facial injuries and had been stabbed. She died in hospital. Nicholas Rogers, 26, has been charged with her murder.
11 August 2017: Leah Cohen, 66, and her daughter Hannah Cohen, 33, were stabbed to death. Joshua Cohen, 27, Leah’s son and Hannah’s brother, has been charged with their murders.
11 August 2017: Hannah Cohen, 33, and her mother, Leah Cohen, 66, were stabbed to death. Joshua Cohen, 27, Hannah’s brother and Leah’s son, has been charged with their murders.
12 August 2017: Beryl Hammond, 81, was found dead at home. Her son, Darren Hammond, 41, has been charged with her murder.
14 August 2017: Quyen Ngoc Nguyen, 29, was found dead inside a burning car. William McFall, 50, and Stephen Unwin, 39, have been charged with her murder.
14 August 2017: Karen Jacquet, 59, was found dead by police called to an incident. Yousef Mohammed, 65, has been charged with murder.
22 August 2017: Asiyah Harris, 27, was stabbed to death by her husband Adan Dahir, 38, after telling him that she was leaving him.
26 August 2017: Kellie Sutton, 30, died in hospital 3 days after attempting to kill herself. Her partner Stephen Gane, 31, was found guilty of coercive control in a landmark case in which the judge told him “ Your behaviour drove Kellie Sutton to hang herself that morning. ‘You beat her and ground her down and broke her spirits.”
27 August 2017: Jessica King, 23, was found dead. Jordan Thackray, 27, has been charged with her murder.
9 September 2017: Tyler Denton, 25, was found dead. Redvers Bickley, 21, was charged with her murder and the attempted murder of her father and two sisters
September 2017: Emma Kelty, 43, was shot, raped, tortured and had her throat slit before her body was dumped in fast flowing water. She was kayaking down the Amazon river and killed in Brazil by drug traffickers.
24 September 2017: Jane Hings, 72, was found dead at home. Craig Keogh, 25, has been charged with her murder, rape and burglary.
25 September 2017: Linda Parker, 51, was found dead at home after police received a call expressing concern at her welfare. Glen Gibbons. 51, has been charged with her murder.
25 September 2017: Amy Barnes, 32, was stabbed in the neck as she slept in bed by her husband 30-year-old James Barnes. He then killed himself.
27 September 2017: Nasima Noorzia, 29, was found dead in woodland by a roadside after a search following a call about concerns for her safety. Her husband, Habib Rahman, 42, has been charged with her murder.
28 September 2017: Katherine Smith, 26, was found dead. Anthony Lowe, 46, has been charged with her murder.
29 September 2017: Leanne McKie, 39, was found dead in a lake. Her husband Darren, McKie, 43, has been charged with her murder.
4 October 2017: Jane Sergeant, 67, was collected from a care-home by her husband Richard Sergeant, he took her to their home and smothered her and then hanged himself.
15 October 2017: Shaeen Akthar, 46, was killed. Her husband Parvez Akhtar, 46, has been charged with her murder.
20 October 2017: Teresa Wishart, 80, was found dead as a result of blunt force trauma to the head. Charles Stapleton, 51 has been charged with her murder. He was also charged with burglary.
21 October 2017: Moira Gilbertson, 57, was found dead. It is believed she had been dead for some time. Roger Crossan, 52, has been charged with her murder.
21 October 2017: Anne O’Neill, 51, was found fatally injured in the garden of her elderly parents. Her son, Declan O’Neill, 27, has been charged with her murder.
22 October 2017: Elizabeth Merriman, 39, was killed by stab wounds to the torso and abdomen. Her husband Darren Merriman has been charged with her murder.
22October 2017: Janet Northmore, 76, was found dead. Shaun McDonald, 54, was charged with her murder.
26 October 2017: Jillian Howell, 46, was stabbed to death. Her colleague David Browning, 51, has been charged with her murder.
29 October 2017: Mary Steel, 79, was stabbed to death. Her son, Nicholas Steel, 57, has been charged with her murder.
4 November 2017: Chloe Miazek, 20, was found dead. Mark Bruce, 32, has been charged in relation to her death.
5 November 2017: Simone Grainger, 30, was found dying of head Her husband Steven Grainger, 32, has been charged with her murder.
12 November 2017: Michele Anison, 56, was volunteering in Belize when she was stabbed to death.
15 November 2017: Patricia McIntosh, 56, died of head injuries. Her husband Andrew McIntosh, 54, has been charged with her murder.
16 November 2017: Catherine Burke, 55, was stabbed to death in her own home in a sexually motivated assault by Kasim Lewis, 30, who, 6 weeks later murdered Iuliana Tudos.
21/22 November 2017: Valerie Turner, 62, died in hospital after a cardiac arrest which followed her being assaulted by her son Jason Turner, 37. He has admitted to killing her.
23 November 2017: Lisa-Marie Thornton, 36, was stabbed 3 times by her former partner Owen Pellow, 43.
25 November 2017: Tracey Bowen, 52, was stabbed in the neck by Steven Jones, 36.
27 November 2017: Lisa Chadderton, 44, died of stab wounds and strangulation. Mark Tindill, 56, has been charged with her murder.
29 November 2017: Monika Lasek, 36, was stabbed to death. Her husband Zbigniew Lasek, 35, has been charged with her murder.
29 November 2017: Ruby Wilson, 94, was stabbed in the throat. Her grandson, Anthony Jennings, 32, has been charged with her murder.
Patricia Henry, 46, went missing in November 2017. In October 2021, George Metcalff, 71, was found guilty of raping and murdering her. Patricia’s body has not been found.
1 December 2017: Susan Westwood, 68, was found with multiple stab wounds. Thomas Westwood, 46, has been charged in relation to her death.
4 December 2017: Marie Brown, 41, was strangled at the home of her father, who had also been murdered. Their killer(s) has/have not yet been found.
7 December 2017: Ella Parker, 29, died of puncture wounds to the neck. Ryan Blacknell, 24, described in the press as ‘a friend’, has been charged in relation to her death.
11 December 2017: Demi Pearson, 15, died in a house fire along with three siblings in an arson attack committed by Zak Bolland, 23 and David Worrall, 25, who had been involved in a feud with her older brother.
12 December 2017: Janine Bowater, 25, was strangled to death. Her partner John Wright, 32, was charged with her murder.
16 December 2017: Suzanne Brown, 33, was stabbed 173 times. Jake Neate, 36, has been charged with her murder.
16 December 2017: Rebecca Dykes, 30, was sexually assaulted and strangled before being dumped at a roadside. Tarek Hawchieh, 36, has admitted to her murder.
21 December 2017: Jodie Willsher, 30, was stabbed to death at work. Neville Hord, 44, said to be the former partner of her mother, has been charged with her murder.
22 December 2017: Beverley Bliss, 52, was found dead and her partner seriously injured. Her son James Standing, 35, has been charged with murder and attempted murder.
23 December 2017: Nicole Campbell, 30, was found dead with 30 stab wounds. It is believed that she was killed by John Morris, who also killed himself.
24 December 2017: Iuliana Tudos, 22, went missing as she was on the way to meet friends. She was found dead with a head injury and stab wounds in a disused park building. Kasim Lewis, 31, has been charged with her murder.
25 December 2017: Jayne Reat, 43, was stabbed to death as she tried to protect her daughter. Nathan Ward, the son of her partner, has been charged with murder and attempted murder.
25 December 2017: Jillian Grant, 43, was found dead in a house where there had been a fire. Mark Smith, 41, has been charged with her murder and attempted murder.
26 December 2017: Pauline Cockburn, 48, was found dead with her partner Kevin Armstrong, 53. Police believe he killed her before killing himself.
27 December 2017: Julie Fox, 51, was found dead in her home after a neighbour reported a smell of gas. Adrian Jenkins, 43, has been charged with her murder.
30 December 2017: Anne Searle, 62, was found dead. Her husband Stephen Searle, 64, has been charged with her murder.
31 December 2017: Melanie Clark, 44, was stabbed to death. Her husband David Clark, 49, has been charged with her murder.

Awaiting charging/conviction information regarding the death of Rosemarie Stokes.

Please let me know if you have information regarding the deaths of any other women/girls (aged 13 and over) where a man/men is/are the primary suspects in the UK or UK women killed abroad in 2017.

*Counting Dead Women is a record of women and girls aged 13 and over. Saffie Roussos is commemorated here but not included in the count.

Intimate Partner and Domestic Violence Homicides*: Sex Differences April 2012 – March 2015 (3 years)

September 1, 2016 by Karen Ingala Smith

Domestic Homicide or Intimate Partner Homicide?

The ONS defines domestic homicide as including the following: spouse, cohabiting partner, boyfriends/girlfriend, ex-spouse/ex-co-habiting partner, ex-boyfriend/girlfriend, adulterous relationship, lover’s spouse and emotional-rival as well as son/daughter, parent (including step and adopted relationships), which is broader than the generally understood partner or ex-partner to more closely align with the government definition of domestic violence.

Intimate partner homicides are a subset of this and are committed by cohabiting partner, boyfriends/girlfriend, ex-spouse/ex-co-habiting partner, ex-boyfriend/girlfriend, adulterous relationship, lover’s spouse and/or emotional-rival.

Domestic Violence – Who gets killed?

DV who.JPG

More women than men are killed in the context of ‘domestic homicide’, 315 women in 3 years compared to 117 men. Women were 73% of all victims of domestic violence homicide, men were 27% of all victims of domestic violence homicide.

Domestic Violence – Who gets killed by whom?

DV who by whom

Women killed in the context of ‘domestic homicide’ are more likely than men to be killed by members of the opposite sex: Of the 315 female victims of ‘domestic homicide’, 304 (97%) were killed by men. Of the 117 male victims of ‘domestic homicide’, 37 (32%) were killed by women

Domestic Violence -Who kills?

DV who kills

Intimate Partner Violence – Who gets killed?

IPV who

More women than men are killed by a partner/ex-partner, 243 women in 3 years compared to 60 men. Women were 80% of all victims of intimate partner homicide (243/303), men were 20% of all victims of intimate partner homicide (60/303)

Intimate Partner Violence – Who kills?

IPV who kills.JPG

Intimate Partner Violence – Who gets killed by whom?

IPV who by whom.JPG

Men killed by current or ex-intimate partners are more likely than women to have been killed by someone of the same sex. Of the 60 male victims of intimate partner homicide, 27 (45%) were killed by men, 33 (55%) were killed by women. Of the 243 female victims of intimate partner homicide, 2 (1%) were killed by women, 241 (99%) were killed by men.

Of those killed in the context of intimate partner homicide by someone of the opposite sex, women were 88% (241/274) of victims, men were 12% (33/274), i.e. women are more than 7 times more likely to be killed by a man, than men are by a women in the context of intimate partner homicide.

*Homicide – In England and Wales homicide is constituted of two offences: murder and manslaughter. Murder is committed when a person (or persons) of sound mind unlawfully kills someone and had the intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm. There are three exceptions which can make a killing manslaughter rather than murder: that there was intent but a partial defence applies, that there was not intent but there was gross negligence and risk of death, or thirdly, that there was no intent but conduct that was an unlawful act which involved danger and resulted in death.

Data from Office for National Statistics (2016) Focus on Violence Crime and Sexual Offences. London. Office for National Statistics

A Tale of Six Johns

August 16, 2015 by Karen Ingala Smith

(Image: Top, L to R: Mathew Cherrington, Mateusz Kosecki, Michael Wenham.

Bottom L to R: Robert Fraser, Steven Mathieson, Nicholae Patraucean)

Prostitution is not safe for women. Women who sell sex face regular physical and sexual violence. More than half of women involved in prostitution in the UK have been raped and/or sexually assaulted – the vast majority of these assaults committed by sex buyers (Hester & Westmarland, 2004). Last year, 2014, six women who sell sex were murdered in the UK: Maria Duque-Tunjano, 48; Karolina Nowikiewicz, 25; Rivka Holden, 55; Yvette Hallsworth, 36; Lidia Pascale, 26 and Luciana Maurer, 23. They were all killed by johns, that is by men who buy sex.

Prostitution is often framed in the context of women’s choices, those of us who oppose prostitution accused of denying women’s agency, their capacity to choose and their right to do so. But a choice based on necessity, on a lack of viable alternatives isn’t really a choice. Five of the six women above were not born in the UK, coming from Colombia, Poland, Israel and two from Romania. The only UK born woman had a problem with substance use. Poor women, migrant women and women with problematic substance use are disproportionately represented amongst women who sell sex. And whilst some men sell sex, women do so disproportionately. Men are also overwhelmingly, regardless of the sex of the seller, the buyers.

Mathew Cherrington had been exercising his consumer choices. The 26-year-old man’s phone records showed he had contacted several women who sold sex before arranging for 26-year-old Lidia Pascale to visit his flat. She suffered at least 11 blows to her head and had injuries on her hands, where she’d put them on her head trying to defend herself. After killing her, Cherrington put Lidia in a black bin bag and into a bin. The final insult, the bin, the destination of unwanted, broken, expended consumables, rubbish.

Mateusz Kosecki chose Yvette Hallsworth because she was “slightly built.” At 18 he was already a predator who preyed on women in prostitution. He had attacked at least three women who sold sex before he killed Yvette Hallsworth, luring her into a secluded alley before stabbing her 18 times using a knife that he had taken out with him. A judge described him has having a ‘fascination, if not an obsession” with prostituted women. His attack on Yvette was described as cruel and savage.

Habitual sex-buyer and frequent consumer of pornography Michael Wenham had spent £15,000 on trying to enlarge his penis but instead lost two inches. He had been married eight years and had three children. He phoned in sick to work and bought a Stanley knife, gloves and plastic sacks. He contacted Karolina Nowikiewicz after the first woman he called wasn’t available. After asking Karolina to undress and get on all fours, he attacked her from behind, slashing her throat, cutting through her major arteries and spinal cord and almost decapitating her. In court, the attack was described as “premeditated, planned and clinically executed.” Karolina was a student, selling sex to fund her studies.

40-year-old ex-banker Robert Fraser was deemed an “ongoing and very real danger to women” by Judge John Bevan. Diagnosed as suffering from paranoid-schizophrenia he is said to have believed that god represented men and the devil represented women. He attacked a 27-year-old prostituted woman in January last year, convincing her that he was going to kill her, shoving her underwear in to her mouth before twisting her head as if he was going to break her neck. 10 days later he bludgeoned Maria Durque-Tunjano to death, she was killed by blunt force trauma to the head. Colombian born British national Maria had been financially supporting her family in Colombia through prostitution. She was still wearing a black corset and high-heeled shoes when her body was found.

Father of two, Steven Mathieson, was in debt due to the extent of his use of phone sex lines. His partner, who knew of neither the phone sex or the debt, was out for the evening and he made arrangements for three women to come to his home. Luciana Maurer was the first to arrive. With his four-year-old son asleep in the house he stabbed her 44 times and cut her throat in an upstairs bedroom. When the other women arrived, he took them in to the room where they immediately saw her dead on the bed. He forced them to strip and to dance for him and raped them both. The naked women were able to escape when Mathieson thought he heard his partner returning. Mathieson dialled 999 and said “I’ve been high on drugs and killed a prostitute.” According to his legal advocate, before that evening, Mathieson had been of “impeccable character.”

Nicolae Patraucean, 21, like Michael Wenham, chose to use a Stanley knife to slit the throat of and dismember Rivka Holden after strangling her following his celebrations at having obtained a national insurance number. Patrucean’s attitude to women in prostitution was illustrated in his statement to a friend “I killed a person … not a person, a whore.”

All women should be safe from men’s violence. With the exception of those whose misogyny infused denial runs so deep that their immediate reaction to that statement is anything on the continuum of ‘what about the men’ responses, there are few who would disagree. Similarly, I don’t know any feminist with an opinion on prostitution that believes women who sell sex should face or fear violence. If abolitionists, harm-reducers and free-choice free-market celebrants of prostitution agree on one thing, surely it is this.

Having a market of women – whether we are selling sex or whether our modified and culturally idealised images are used to adorn adverts of other products – commodifies women. It makes us into objects. As objects we become ‘less than’, less than fully human, not equal. Our value is set by our worth as products on the scale of marketability. This affects all women, whether or not we are those for sale or those used to boost sales. It’s no coincidence that we talk about purchasing power. Regulating the sale of sex doesn’t empower women, it further endorses men’s power over the women by giving them consumer status, rights and choices. Women, on the other hand, become commodities, interchangeable and disposable.

We need to change men’s attitudes to women, we need to eradicate the misogyny and entitlement that fuels men’s violence against women. Inequality between women and men is a cause and a consequence of men’s violence against women. We simply cannot achieve equality between the sexes, let alone the liberation of women from men’s oppression, whilst one sex is for sale, the consumable, and one sex is the buyer, the consumer. Women’s rights to safety must always be greater than men’s rights as consumers.

Six men: A Nick, a Mick, a Steve, a Bob and two Matts. All Johns. Six women: Maria, Karolina, Rivka, Yvette, Lidia and Luciana. All dead. Women should not be for sale.

Karen Ingala Smith

As I see it

Category Archives: Men’s Violence Against Women

At least 100 UK women are suspected to have been killed by men in 2023

Remember her too

Trauma-Informed Services for Women Subjected to Men’s Violence Must be Single-Sex Services

[i] Widom et al. 2008.
[ii] Classen, Palesh, & Aggarwal, 2005
[iii] ONS Impact of child abuse on later life, Crime Survey for England and Wales, year ending March 2016
[iv] Kinnell, 1993; Barnard et al., 2002, Campbell & Stoops, 2010
[v]Ward, Day & Weber, 1999
[vi] Farley, 1998.