EXCLUSIVE: Figures show time taken for domestic abuse cases to conclude nearly doubled between 2018 and 2024

A Wigton woman is speaking out against lengthy court delays after having to wait over a year to see her ex-partner in court.

Kieran Miller, 29, was this week sentenced to 18 months, suspended for two years, for two counts of assault against the woman and threatening to kill her with a knife.

The incidents took place in 2023, but the long wait for trial and sentencing took it's toll.

His former partner said: "I've had to suffer for months and months, go through a pregnancy, bring up a baby and protect him from it all.

"I waited well over a year, that's a long time to have something hanging over you, especially when you need to move on with your life.

"I thought I can finally enjoy my life, almost bring some sort of peace, but for it to take so long, you just think how can they do that?"

During the wait for trial, the woman had to continue to live in the same town as Kieran: "I work here, I have friends here, I needed support from them, I was going on to have a baby. I was terrified to be here, but it's where I needed to be for support.

"It makes me feel upset that people in my situation have to wait that long.

"Ideally a time frame should be introduced, such as 3 months, with a maximum of 6.

"You want to put it all behind you, but how can you do that when this is hanging over you."

Court delays nearly doubled from 2018-2024

Our exclusive FOI with the Crown Prosecution Service has found that the length of time from charge to prosecution finalisation in cases flagged with domestic abuse nearly doubled from 2018 to 2024.

Figures show that in 2018 it would take on average around 85 days, whereas in June of 2024, it was taking over 165 days.

Completed prosecution outcomes comprise convictions (guilty pleas, convictions after trial and cases proved in the absence of the defendant) and unsuccessful outcomes (prosecutions dropped by the CPS, discharges, acquittals after trial and administrative finalisations).

Now, the Wigton woman is calling for a set time frame to be put in place. She wants to see cases, like her one, heard within 6 months, to reduce anxiety in the build up, remove the risk of victims dropping out of cases and ensure justice is swift.

She said: "It still makes me feel upset that people in my situation have to wait that long. There should be something in place, especially for people that live in the same area as their abuser, to keep women and girls safe.

"It's a long time to have something hanging over you. Ideally 3 months would be a good time frame, but a maximum of 6 months for a case to be heard.

"You need to be able to move one with your life, put it behind you, but how can you do that when this is over you?"

And her calls are being backed by Bolton based domestic abuse charity Endeavour Project.

Linda Charnock is the operations director there, she says: "We're working on recovery over a period of time, but when people are waiting 2 to 3 years for a case to get to court it's ridiculous.

"People just want to get on with their lives but everything is done by the finalisation of this court case.

"Because of delays we can't keep cases open for two or three years because we have waiting lists. Once the work has been completed by us in regards to rehousing and safety planning and so on, we have to wait until a month before their court case before we re-open their case just to ensure that victim is not alone going to court.

"Delays like this though are going to prevent people reaching out and getting help. There's going to be people who are victims of domestic abuse out there, not reporting to the police, all because the court systems have failed them."

Cumbria's Police and Crime Commissioner has his say

We took our figures to Cumbria's Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, as well as the story of the Wigton survivor, to ask if he believed the wait for trial was acceptable.

He said: "In Cumbria we all know each other, we all know everybody, if your living in a town you'll know everybody.

"These things need to be dealt with quickly, swiftly, over and done with, and then all the parties can actually get on with their lives.

"There are always complexities, every case is different, but where ever possible we should be looking to deal with them, get them to the court and dealt with sooner rather than later.

"That's good for the victim, it's dealt with, they know justice works and they get closure.

"Speed is important, you should not be bumping into your abuser on a daily basis."

In regards to the long waits, the PFCC has raised his own concerns, and has written to the CPS over Cumbrian judges being used to cover trials and cases in other areas due to those areas having fallen further behind than this county.

He said: "I've written to the regional head of the CPS, stating my concern around Cumbria giving some of it's sitting days to elsewhere and that creating a larger lag time in our own sitting days.

"I don't that's acceptable that Cumbria, because it managed itself well in covid, it has to sort of fall down to the lowest common denominator.

"I want to see us going the other way and actually reduce the wait times we already have here.

"This individual has gone through a dreadful horrible experience, this should be dealt with, and that will allow the victim to move on.

"Having the confidence to report it takes a huge amount of courage, but to then sit there waiting to go to court, I'm not surprised people pull out of the system because it takes too long.

"My job, the CPS and others, is to shorten that, put the resources where they are needed, and get the times down."

Government response

In regards to the long wait for trials, a Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "The new Government inherited a justice system in crisis, with a record and rising Crown Court backlog. These delays have consequences, with justice delayed and denied for far too many victims.

"We have pledged to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, and this includes delivering swifter justice. We are funding a record number of sitting days and we have also extended magistrates’ court sentencing powers from six to 12 months, freeing up 2,000 days for the Crown Courts to handle the most serious cases."

If you have been affected by any of issues raised in this article, support can be found here at the National Domestic Abuse Helpline web page.

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