Woman spared longer sentence for boyfriend abuse in Stewartby Published duration 29 June 2018

image copyright sbna image caption Jordan Worth (left) was jailed for seven-and-a-half years for coercive control and violence against her former boyfriend

The jail term given to a woman who scalded and stabbed her partner was not unduly lenient, judges have ruled.

Jordan Worth, 22, admitted controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate relationship, wounding with intent and causing grievous bodily harm.

She kept food from her partner at their home in Stewartby in Bedfordshire and isolated him from his family.

The Court of Appeal decided not to increase Luton Crown Court's seven-and-a-half-year sentence

The Solicitor General had argued there was "higher culpability" on her part because her partner, Alex Skeel, was vulnerable.

But Lord Justice Holroyde said, while the sentence was undoubtedly "very lenient," it was not unduly so.

'Third-degree burns'

In passing judgement he acknowledged that it had been a "difficult sentencing process" for the judge at Luton.

Worth, whose last address was in Norfolk, declined to appear at the High Court hearing, but her solicitor said she felt remorse.

media caption Alex Skeel: 'My abusive girlfriend threatened to kill me'

The prosecution is the UK's first conviction for coercive control involving a female offender.

During the last nine months of their relationship, Worth subjected Mr Skeel to multiple physical injuries, often requiring hospital treatment.

The abuse came to an end one evening last June when a neighbour called the police after hearing shouts from the couple's home.

Ambulance staff noted injuries to his hand and burns to his arms and legs which had been self-treated with cling film.

The court was told Worth had thrown boiling water over him and that he had second- and third-degree burns.

"The hospital told me I was 10 days away from death," Mr Skeel said, and urged other victims in abusive relationships to speak out