Sally Challen killed her husband Richard after decades of abuse and coercive control. She was convicted of murder — not manslaughter. John Warboys r@ped hundreds of women and was due to be released from prison after serving just 8 years. Lawyer Harriet Wistrich was involved in both cases. In Sally's case she used the coercive control law to free her. With Worboys she sued the police and used the law to keep him behind bars. These are landmark cases that changed the law — and changed what justice looks like for women.

For over 30 years, Harriet Wistrich has used the law to fight for women failed by a justice system that was never designed with them in mind. As founder of the Centre for Women's Justice, she has changed what the law can do — and who it protects.

In this episode Laura and Harriet cover:

- How a protest outside the Royal Courts of Justice in the early 90s led Harriet to train as a lawyer while simultaneously fighting for Emma Humphreys' appeal
- The landmark case of Sally Challen — victim of coercive control from the age of 15 — and how the 2015 coercive control law opened the door to her appeal
- Why women who kill violent partners are so often convicted of murder while men who kill women walk away with manslaughter
- The double standard that sees victims' characters decimated in court while abusers are protected
- John Worboys — the black cab predator who attacked over 100 women — and the two survivors who challenged the state's failures through the Human Rights Act
- The landmark legal precedent that now requires police to conduct effective investigations — and how it directly shaped the Robert Brown parole board hearing
- Why the wider offending history of dangerous men must be considered at parole — and the direct line from the Warboys case to Brown being kept behind bars
- What the Centre for Women's Justice does — and how you can support the work

The ripples from Harriet's work are still being felt. Robert Brown remains in prison, in part, because of what she built.

📖 Harriet's book: Sister in Law: Fighting for Justice in a System Designed by Men https://www.amazon.com/Sister-Law-Fighting-Justice-Designed/dp/1911709267
🌐 Centre for Women's Justice: centreforwomensjustice.org.uk
🎧 Listen to the full series Joanna Simpson: A Miscarriage of Justice https://www.crime-analyst.com/case-004-joanna-simpson-a-miscarriage-of-justice/
🌐 For a deeper dive in to the John Worboys case and Harriet’s successful legal challenge, listen to the Ringleader and Lifer live interview in the Crime Analyst Squad. The legal judgments and documents referenced during that discussion are also available exclusively in the episode post. ⁠ https://www.patreon.com/CrimeAnalyst/posts/fighting-for-in-163744561?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link
🎧 Listen to The Forgotten Victims. Laura’s investigative series about serial killer Peter Sutcliffe and the botched investigation: https://www.crime-analyst.com/case-001-the-forgotten-victims/
🎧 Listen and learn about Sally Challen and the extraordinary story behind the landmark case that changed the legal landscape for victims of coercive control.

36: The Crime Analyst | Ep 36 | Deconstructing Coercive Control with Jess Hill, Part 1 https://www.crime-analyst.com/36-the-crime-analyst-ep-36/

Ep 261: The Unthinkable: A Story of Control, Violence and My Mother with David Challen https://www.crime-analyst.com/ep-261-the-unthinkable-a-story-of-control-violence-and-my-mother-with-david-challen/

Ep 323 Coercive Control: A Child's Unthinkable Journey with David Challen https://www.crime-analyst.com/ep-323-the-unthinkable-revisited-coercive-control-advocacy-and-change-with-david-challen/

Ep 325: Coercive Control: A Child’s Unthinkable Journey with David Challen, Part 2 https://www.crime-analyst.com/ep-325-coercive-control-a-childs-unthinkable-journey-with-david-challen-part-2/

Follow Laura Richards:
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🌐 https://www.thelaurarichards.com

Join the Crime Analyst Squad:
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