In 2022, 5642 individuals took their own lives in England and Wales, with the majority of these suicides being committed by men. This equated to a male suicide rate of 16.4 per 100,000 compared to a female rate of 5.4 per 100,000.[1] The gender differential within these statistics reflects a historical trend of predominantly male victims of suicide.[2]
However, there is a substantial prevalence of suicide among domestic abuse (DA) victims which, by extension, disproportionately affects women as they comprise two-thirds of the annual 2.3 million victims of DA in the UK.[3]Â
Of the total reported 242 domestic abuse-related deaths from April 2022 to March 2023 in England and Wales, 93 were found to be suicides following DA compared to 80 intimate partner homicides ('IPH'). 90% of these suicides were women. [4] The number of suspected suicides following abuse outweighs the number of deaths from IPH in the given period. DAIS, therefore, mirrors domestic abuse's classification as a gendered crime.
Unfortunately, these statistics reveal only the tip of the iceberg of DAIS as 76% of domestic abuse goes unreported in the UK, meaning the vast majority of abuse victims are excluded from the above figures. This reality means that the true number of deaths resulting from DAIS is far greater than the above statistics reveal.
Despite the growing phenomenon of DAIS, in January 2024, the UK government rejected a petitioned request to create a new offence to respond to Domestic Abuse-Induced Suicide ('DAIS').[5] They claimed that the existing offences of coercive and controlling behaviour under the Serious Crime 2015 Act (amended by the Domestic Abuse Act 2021), encouraging suicide under the Suicide Act 1961, and manslaughter under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 are sufficient. However, these offences have fallen into disuse with only one successful conviction of manslaughter in the DAIS context and none for encouraging suicide.
While coercive and controlling behaviour has been successfully imposed, it carries a maximum custodial sentence of 5 years and does not reflect responsibility for the victim's loss of life, rendering it an inadequate legal response. The disuse of these offences has, therefore, created a de-facto void in the law that fails to vindicate victims who lose their lives to abuse in this context.
In 2021, the UK Government introduced the Domestic Abuse Act. Hailed as a 'landmark' in the prevention of DA, the 2021 Act intended to amend the DA framework to ensure the vindication of all DA victims' rights. Despite this bold objective, the 2021 Act fails to provide a framework for DAIS as the government clings to existing offences that have continually proved to be ineffective in responding to DAIS.
Rather than shoehorning DAIS into existing offences, a new offence can be designed to overcome the barriers that have hindered the prosecution of abusers in this context so far.
At Misneach Advocacy, we intend to hold the government accountable for their promise to ensure all victims of abuse receive the justice they deserve, including those who lose their lives to abuse through suicide.
Rhianna Dorrian, Founder of Misneach Advocacy, LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate
References
[1] Office for National Statistics, ‘Suicides in England and Wales: 2022 Registrations’
[2] For an overview of the historical trends of male suicide rates please see S. Bennett et al., ‘Male Suicide Risk and Recovery Factors: A Systematic Review and Qualitative Metasynarticle of Two Decades of Research’ (2023) 149(7-8) Psychological Bulletin 371–417.
[3] V. Munro and R. Aitken, ‘Adding Insult to Injury? The Criminal Law's Response to Domestic Abuse – Related Suicide in England and Wales’ (2018) 732 Criminal Law Review 732-741.
[4] Data provided from Official National Police Chief’s Council. Please see National Police Chief’s Council, ‘Domestic Homicides and Suspected Victim Suicides 2022-2023 Report’. Available at <https://www.vkpp.org.uk/vkpp-work/domestic-homicide-project/ >
[5] Please see <https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/648948?reveal_response=yes>
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