Penelope jackson guilty of murder

[Thomasina79]

I’ve been following this news item with interest. She is the woman who stabbed her violent and coercive and bullying husband to death after 20 years of torment. She denied murder, but admitted manslaughter.

Am I being unreasonable in thinking the jury should have not found her guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. Murder carries a life sentence in prison and I cannot see that that there is anything to gain by locking her away.

@sweeneytoddsrazor

Search histories are never going to be concrete proof though. How many people reading through threads on here for example then go and look something up to find out what it is even if it doesn't relate to their own situations.

How would they know it was her search history and not his?

I have no idea what was proven about this as I haven't read it but it suddenly dawned on me that on a household computer there must be some burden of proof to prove who made the search?

@itsgettingwierd

Very good point! Poor guy was probably horrified to learn that there are zero options for abused men.

@itsgettingwierd

I hadn't even considered the possibility of a shared computer, that makes it even harder to prove.

It doesn’t actually matter if she was abused, she murdered someone. The one does not balance out the other. She’s a murderer and needs to serve her sentence accordingly.

This is the sort of comment I was referring to in my earlier posts. Abuse CAN matter in murder trials. If it leads to a loss of control - that is well established. And many believe that should be extended to ‘slow-burn’ situations too - again, not a new idea. It obviously was not accepted here either by jury or the judge, but if there IS abuse it absolutely can and should matter when it comes to someone’s defence. Nor does their own violence invalidate their abuse.

YABU.

The jury heard the evidence in the case, I didn’t. They evaluated Jackson’s honesty and character, I didn’t. They convicted her of murder on the basis of what they had seen. The judge then remarked on her complete lack of remorse.

On that basis, there is no basis for me to believe that she has been wrongly convicted. If the evidence changes, however, I would obviously be willing to change my opinion.

YABU, she murdered him.

She was married 4 times. Her 3rd husband killed himself and she admitted in court that she’d driven him to suicide. It’s emerged that whilst he was abroad she had his two dogs put down! She sounds an absolutely horrid woman.
Yes, her 4th may have been abusive but she she sounds abusive too.

*4th husband,

@LizzieSiddal

She was married 4 times. Her 3rd husband killed himself and she admitted in court that she’d driven him to suicide. It’s emerged that whilst he was abroad she had his two dogs put down! She sounds an absolutely horrid woman. Yes, her 4th may have been abusive but she she sounds abusive too.

That's horrific! I didn't know this. Yep she sounds vile.

@SlugRose

I have no time for domestic abusers. They tend to do it over and over to every partner. They don't change.

We do not know if he was abusive. And your last bit is disgusting if what his daughter said was true and she was in fact the abuser.

I agree that abusive men tend to abuse all their partners. And that another thing that doesn’t add up about Penelope’s claims that he was abusive.

David’s ex-wife testified that Penelope was abusive and he was scared of her. She reported him as “white and shaking” after Penelope threatened to cut off his penis if he ever left her.

If David were abusive, then why would his ex-wife testify the complete opposite? Surely that would be her moment to get up and say “me too” about her ex DH that had cheated on her and left her?

@Dojacatpaws

So the daughter said he had held a knife to her mums throat and given her a bloody nose in the past, but because it was years ago, was discounted, because apparently they were getting on now, what a joke

No, it was discounted because their other daughter and their son stated that no violence happened. There were three children raised by David and Penelope.

But there was evidence that he had once been abusive so how could the judge say she fabricated her husband's bad character

As others have said, we don't have the full evidence and it appears that the press are not being consistent in what they are reporting.

The prosecution appear to have had ample evidence to establish prior intent and her defence team could not provide sufficient evidence to justify a mitigating defence.

If the jury have got it wrong, an appeal will be lodged and that appeal will be successful.

Just watched the video footage. Have to agree that she appears to lack remorse. She was more bothered about her coat and slippers.

His son killed himself and if she was winding him up at the time maybe she drove him to react with a knife.

As others have said, none of us know what really happened except her but the judge and the jury are the next best witnesses.

It continues to be really disturbing that many mumsnetters simply cannot let themselves believe that a woman can be capable of cold blooded murder. The desperation to blame her victim for no other reason than that he was male, is stunning.
The spurious comparisons between her sentence and that of men whose cases were entirely different are just so illogical.

Several witnesses stood up and said that she was the abuser, but him. But that's just glossed over.

Oh, and she was only found guilty of murder because the judge was a man. That was a good one.

NOT him.

I think they both sound like despicable people - evidence of abusive behaviour on both sides, neither of them seemed to have been able to stay faithful to previous partners and she clearly did murder him and doesn't sound very remorseful. Their children don't seem to have thought very highly of them either. All very bizarre.

The other daughter testified the following about Penelope Jackson:

“Jackson's stepdaughter, Jane Calverley, who was the victim's daughter from his first marriage, claimed the defendant seemed to enjoy baiting people.

Ms Calverley said: "I always felt everything had to revolve around Jackson - she was a very larger-than-life character, she would enjoy making people uncomfortable."

She also described a time when her father and stepmother had stayed with her family in Australia for five weeks, and Jackson would leave the door to their bedroom open when she was naked.

Ms Calverley said: "She didn't care that my son, who was entering puberty, would observe her sitting there naked, drying her hair.

"For me, the defendant liked baiting people for fun, sport - she liked to see my father uncomfortable, and she enjoyed that."

Unfortunately that's not how the law works. If there was intent and compelling evidence of intent then it is murder, not manslaughter. The jury are supposed to put aside any mitigating factors

@wheresmymojo

Two observations...

1. They both seem, by all accounts, dreadful and perhaps quite a good match for each other and keeping anyone else from having to be in a relationship with either of them

1. This whole thread underlines what a morbid sense of humour I have. PPs describing the video of her as chilling...it made me laugh out loud!

You think you have a morbid sense of humour, finding what she said after she'd stabbed him to death funny enough to laugh out loud?

Jesus Christ.

I feel very sorry for their children

it doesnt matter how she looks on a video...if during questioning she has made clear her intent she has no grounds to plea manslaughter. I am not disputing she was abused however she did seek to kill him. it wasnt an accident or an incidient gone wrong.

You know @ssd there are some threads I completely disagree with you ,but in this one Im in agreement with everything you say ,some attitudes I find totally disturbing.

Clearly misandry is a problem.

I can see way more people on here agreeing that the woman is a dreadful person and definitely a murderer. I see very few people defending Penelope Jackson.