By Zoila Palma: The British government has announced a conditional pardon for Ruth Ellis, the last woman executed in Britain, more than 70 years after she was hanged for the murder of her abusive lover, AP reports.
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said the pardon recognizes a “profound injustice” in the case, replacing Ellis’ death sentence with a sentence of life imprisonment.
However, the pardon does not declare her innocent of the 1955 killing of race-car driver David Blakely.
Ellis, a 28-year-old single mother and nightclub hostess, was convicted of shooting Blakely outside a London pub on April 10, 1955.
Her trial lasted just over a day, and a jury returned a guilty verdict in less than 30 minutes. She was executed by hanging on July 13, 1955, at Holloway Prison in London, while hundreds of supporters gathered outside in silent protest.
The pardon follows a campaign led by Ellis’ grandchildren, who argued that the repeated physical, emotional and sexual abuse she suffered was never properly considered during her trial.
Lawyers representing the family submitted evidence suggesting Ellis was a victim of what is now recognized as battered woman syndrome.
Witnesses testified that Blakely had repeatedly assaulted her, threatened to kill her, and allegedly caused a miscarriage after a violent attack. Supporters of the pardon say Ellis’ case helped reshape British law.
At the time of her trial, she was not permitted to argue that years of abuse had affected her mental state.
Just two years after her execution, Parliament introduced legislation allowing defendants to use a diminished responsibility defense.
Her legal team argued that had such a defense been available in 1955, Ellis likely would have been convicted of manslaughter rather than murder and would not have faced execution.
Ellis’ granddaughter, Laura Enston, welcomed the decision, saying it finally acknowledged that the justice system had failed her grandmother.
She said the effects of the execution were felt for generations, noting that Ellis’ children struggled with lifelong trauma after losing their mother.
The case remains one of Britain’s most famous criminal trials and has been the subject of books, films and television dramas, including the 1985 movie Dance with a Stranger and the recent ITV series A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story.
The post International News: Last woman executed in Britain pardoned 70 years after killing abusive lover appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Zoila Palma: The British government has announced a conditional pardon for Ruth Ellis, the last woman executed in Britain, more than 70 years after she was hanged for the murder of her abusive lover, AP reports. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said the pardon recognizes a “profound injustice” in the case, replacing Ellis’ death
The post International News: Last woman executed in Britain pardoned 70 years after killing abusive lover appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.