Law Weblog

Miscarriage of Justice? R v Ellis (Ruth) (Deceased) (2003) CA

Monday 8 December 2003 at 11:15 pm | In News | Post Comment

Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain, had her murder conviction upheld by the Court of Appeal; Lord Justice Kay, Mr Justice Silber and Mr Justice Leveson.

The case was referred to the court by the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

The Old Bailey judge Sir Cecil Havers barred the jury from considering whether Ellis had acted under provocation.

Two years after Ellis’s execution – and largely prompted by her case – Parliament changed the law so as to allow a defence of diminished responsibility.

Lord Justice Kay: “We have to question whether this exercise of considering an appeal so long after the event, when Mrs Ellis herself had consciously and deliberately chosen not to appeal at the time, is a sensible use of the limited resources of the Court of Appeal.”

News report, here

Appeal case report, here