Latest news with #FionaDrouet
Times
22-05-2025
- Times
Non-fatal strangulation offence would be a deterrent, mother says
The mother of a student who took her life after being subjected to choking by a former boyfriend has called for non-fatal strangulation to be made an offence. Fiona Drouet made her plea to MSPs for a change in the law to deter offenders after the death of her daughter Emily. The law student was 18 when she died in 2016. She had been subjected to abuse and violence by her former boyfriend, Angus Milligan. She took her life just after he visited her at her room in halls of residence. Emily Drouet Drouet read text messages to MSPs that her daughter, a fresher at Aberdeen University, had sent to friends, with the student saying about the abuse: 'I was so scared, I thought I
STV News
21-05-2025
- STV News
'Non-fatal strangulation offence will give survivors justice they deserve'
The mother of a student who took her life after being subject to abuse, including non-fatal strangulation, is urging MSPs to make it a new, stand-alone offence. Fiona Drouet is campaigning to change the law following the death of her daughter Emily in 2016. The 18-year-old law student was subjected to abuse and violence by her boyfriend before being found dead in her halls of residence in 2016. Emily's former boyfriend Angus Milligan was later convicted of physically and verbally abusing the teenager and was subsequently expelled from the university. He admitted to choking and slapping Emily as well as assaulting and threatening her during a campaign of abuse. Fiona Drouet is now urging ministers to make non-fatal strangulation a stand-alone offence to help deter offenders in the future. 'We are looking at an exceptionally serious crime that merits a law in itself, to be recognised as exceptionally high risk,' she told MSPs on Wednesday. 'It is very different to other forms of abuse.' Non-fatal strangulation is currently dealt with under the common law of assault in Scotland or under the Domestic Abuse Scotland Act. Ms Drouet said creating a new offence could help educate people about the crime and also deter offenders. She told MSPs that when a person has the oxygen supply to their brain restricted, 'they are going to have an automatic response of fighting, literally fighting for their life, something that is hugely traumatic'. She described it as being 'like a near-death experience'. The mum stood in front of Holyrood's Criminal Justice Committee and read text messages her daughter had sent to friends before her death. In the messages, Emily said about her abuse: 'I was so scared, I thought I was going to die'. In another message, she said: 'I am so scared that I think I want to die.' 'If we have a stand-alone crime saying that was non-fatal strangulation, I think potentially it acts as a strong deterrent, a stronger message,' Fiona said. 'I'm worried any other approach minimises the severity and risk of the crime and doesn't give victims, survivors the justice that they absolutely deserve.' Non-fatal strangulation has already been made a stand-alone offence in the other nations of the UK, with detective superintendent Lindsay Fisher of the Police Service of Northern Ireland telling the committee about the impact there when new laws came in in June 2023. 'The improvements that having a stand-alone offence have been immense,' she told MSPs 'Within three days of the legislation going live, we had not only used the new stand-alone offence, but we had somebody appearing in court having been charged for it.' Dr Emma Forbes, national lead for domestic abuse in the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said they are 'worried' by anecdotal evidence about the 'increased prevalence' of non-fatal strangulation particularly amongst young people. She told the committee that almost two-fifths of the 136 cases COPFS received from Police Scotland in March, which are being prosecuted under the Domestic Abuse Scotland Act, involved non-fatal strangulation. However, Dr Forbes insisted Scotland has 'effective legislation at the moment'. She accepted there are compelling reasons to create a specific offence of non-fatal strangulation saying that this would raise public awareness, which urgently needs to be done, and would also provide improved data on the number of such crimes. But she added: 'We have a very strong foundation in our law in Scotland and I would worry about the unintended consequences of a specific offence, not least because it would be more difficult evidentially to prove.' At the moment, Holyrood's Criminal Justice Committee is considering a petition from Ms Drouet to make non-fatal strangulation a standalone criminal offence in Scotland. MSPs on the committee will listen to evidence from a variety of sources. If they decide that it should be a stand-alone offence, they can invite the Scottish Government to reflect on the evidence and ask if they have any plans to make non-fatal strangulation a standalone offence in Scotland. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Sky News
21-05-2025
- Sky News
MSPs hear evidence amid call to make non-fatal strangulation a standalone offence in Scotland
The mother of a student who took her own life after being abused by her boyfriend has branded non-fatal strangulation as the "ultimate act of control" amid calls to make it a standalone offence. Fiona Drouet's daughter Emily was just 18 years old when she took her own life several days after being choked and slapped by Angus Milligan. The teenager was studying law at the University of Aberdeen when she died in 2016. The following year, Milligan received a Community Payback Order (CPO) with unpaid work and supervision after pleading guilty to assault and behaving in a threatening or abusive manner. Following her daughter's death, Ms Drouet founded EmilyTest - a charity that aims to tackle gender-based violence in universities and colleges - and has lodged a petition to make non-fatal strangulation (NFS) a standalone criminal offence. NFS laws have already been introduced in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Although it is not a standalone offence in Scotland, there is no gap in the law and it is prosecuted under a range of offences. Campaigners say that does not go far enough and believe making it a standalone offence would act as a greater deterrent and lead to more accurate data on the number of incidents reported. Police Scotland and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) agree that NFS is a "red flag" indicator for domestic homicide, but are concerned that a change could dilute current laws already in place. In its 2025-26 Programme for Government, the Scottish government pledge to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the law in relation to NFS to determine if further action is required beyond the existing provisions. Holyrood's Criminal Justice Committee took evidence on NFS on Wednesday. Ms Drouet told the MSPs the harms of NFS are "significant" and could lead to brain damage, organ failure, and potentially death. Describing the psychological impact, she said: "It's like a near-death experience. "And somebody, when they have the oxygen to their brain restricted, they are going to have an automatic response of fighting - literally fighting for their life." Ms Drouet described NFS as "hugely traumatic". She added: "It's the ultimate act of control. And you know that whether you live or die is down to that perpetrator." Ms Drouet highlighted text messages sent by Emily to her friends, which said she feared she was "going to die" when being strangled. In another message, the teenager wrote: "I am so scared that I think I want to die." Ms Drouet said: "Members will know that my daughter is no longer with us after being subjected to horrendous abuse. "And it impacts us all really heavily knowing that she was subjected to these harms and these fears." Ms Drouet believes NFS is an "exceptionally serious crime that merits a law in itself". She added: "I'm worried that any other approach minimises the severity and risk of the crime and doesn't give victims, survivors, the justice that they absolutely deserve." 2:56 Police Scotland has raised concerns that dealing with NFS in isolation or presenting it to court as a single incident "could minimise opportunities" to build a case under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018. The force has suggested implementing a specific aggravating factor in existing offences. Dr Emma Forbes, the national lead for domestic abuse at COPFS, agreed NFS can lead to "lethal consequences". In an earlier written submission, she noted: "Scots law currently criminalises non-fatal strangulation and there is not a gap in the law that was present in the other identified jurisdictions to necessitate a standalone offence of non-fatal strangulation. "Scotland does not need to replicate other jurisdictions in creating a standalone offence to 'keep pace'; rather, it should reflect the fact that other jurisdictions are catching up with the Scottish approach. "This is not a rationale to stand still and there remains significant work to ensure an effective and robust criminal justice response to non-fatal strangulation." Dr Forbes agreed that the normalisation of NFS - particularly within sexual relationships - "needs to be addressed". She said creating a standalone offence would "send a strong message" and achieve greater public awareness "swiftly and effectively", but added: "However, at the same time, it risks a dilution of the currently robust law in Scotland and has the potential to lead to increased reporting but less convictions." Giving evidence to the Holyrood committee, Dr Forbes said more could be done to raise awareness of NFS and agreed there were "compelling reasons" to create a standalone offence. She added: "This is a public harm, but we have a very strong foundation in our law in Scotland and I would worry about the unintended consequences of a specific offence, not least because it would be more difficult evidentially to prove."
The Herald Scotland
19-05-2025
- The Herald Scotland
Crown Office fears over new non-fatal strangulation law
The committee is currently considering a petition from Fiona Drouet, whose daughter Emily took her own life after being slapped and choked by her partner, Angus Milligan. They are due to hear from Ms Drouet, as well as prosecutors and police and independent experts on Wednesday. Scotland is the only part of the UK without specific legislation. Westminster recently amended the Domestic Abuse Act to introduce a standalone offence of strangulation or suffocation in England and Wales. In her petition to the Scottish Parliament, Ms Drouet told MSPs that non-fatal strangulation was 'a significant predictor of homicide in abusive relationships, with victims being eight times more likely to be killed'. READ MORE: Dr Emma Forbes, National Lead for Domestic Abuse at COPFS, told the committee: 'Scots law currently criminalises non-fatal strangulation and there is not a gap in the law that was present in the other identified jurisdictions to necessitate a standalone offence of non-fatal strangulation. 'Scotland does not need to replicate other jurisdictions in creating a standalone offence to 'keep pace'; rather, it should reflect the fact that other jurisdictions are catching up with the Scottish approach. 'This is not a rationale to stand still, and there remains significant work to ensure an effective and robust criminal justice response to non-fatal strangulation.' Dr Forbes warned that introducing a standalone offence could mean such incidents would not be included as part of the pattern of abuse under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act (DASA), making it harder to build a comprehensive case and secure convictions. She said the current law in Scotland already provides 'unlimited sentencing power where the offence is prosecuted as a common law offence and a maximum sentence of 14 years when prosecuted as part of a DASA charge'. 'There is no requirement to prove any injury or harm as a result of the strangulation provided it is intentional,' she said. Police Scotland expressed similar concerns. While acknowledging the severity of non-fatal strangulation, officers warned that creating a new offence could 'minimise opportunities to build a DASA case'. Assistant Chief Constable Steve Johnson told the committee: 'From an investigative perspective, all evidential opportunities would be considered at every incident of non-fatal strangulation — such as a forensic medical examination to document injuries, along with scenes of crime officers seizing evidential samples and photographing injuries. 'The severity of the incident would be supported by a statement from a medical professional, which would influence the charge libelled.' However, he warned that treating non-fatal strangulation in isolation or presenting it to the court as a single incident 'could minimise opportunities to build a DASA case — to truly reflect the abuse experienced by a victim or survivor and the risk presented by a perpetrator'. The ACC stressed that non-fatal strangulation is already captured by existing offences, but said more must be done to improve public awareness. 'There is a need for a greater societal awareness on the use of non-fatal strangulation by perpetrators — not just in the context of offending, but including the psychological harm that it can cause, and its use as a tool by perpetrators in wider patterns of abuse.' The committee is also due to hear from Professor Cath White, Medical Director of the Institute for Addressing Strangulation, who supports creating a standalone offence due to the extreme psychological and physical harm involved. She cited research showing that more than half of women killed by a partner had previously been strangled. 'It is well recognised that non-fatal strangulation can quickly have devastating consequences — including stroke, carotid artery dissection, nerve damage, with minimal force. In addition to any neurological or vascular damage leading to possible cognitive and behavioural changes, there is also the potential for significant psychological trauma.' She added: 'There is increasing recognition of the increase in suicide by those subjected to domestic abuse, including non-fatal strangulation. 'My belief is that by making non-fatal strangulation a stand-alone offence, it raises awareness of the crime amongst professionals — health as well as criminal justice — and the public, making it more likely that it will be treated with the seriousness that is required.' READ MORE: Ms Drouet's daughter Emily met Milligan at Aberdeen University's Hillhead halls of residence. Within weeks, she was being regularly physically and verbally abused. Her family, unaware of the violence, only saw a photograph of her injuries after she died by suicide in March 2016. At Aberdeen Sheriff Court, Milligan admitted choking the 18-year-old, pushing her against a desk and slapping her eight days before her death. He was seen on CCTV leaving her room minutes before she was found dead. Sheriff Malcolm Garden branded Milligan 'controlling and ultimately violent', but said he was powerless to jail him. Milligan was sentenced to 12 months' supervision and ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work as part of a community payback order — later reduced to 120 hours.
