The Island’s first domestic-homicide review was published today by the Safeguarding Partnership Board, which made ten recommendations to government departments and agencies following the death of Pamela Nisbet in 2019.
Her son Andrew admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, with the report revealing that he had, on three occasions, been recommended for detention under mental-health laws – with the third warning coming just five days before he stabbed Mrs Nisbet in the neck during a dispute at her family home in St Peter.
Mr Nisbet, a doctor who is referred to under a pseudonym in the review, was subsequently detained at a secure mental-health facility in the UK and struck off following a General Medical Council investigation.
The independent review – carried out by Jane Monckton Smith, a professor of public protection – concluded that information was available ‘though not necessarily identified, that may have revealed the threat that was posed to Pamela’. Her report also found opportunities to learn ‘when this situation is viewed through the lens of domestic abuse’.
The review adds: ‘The intervention of all organisations and their expertise could, in future, be more effective if the dual lenses of mental health and domestic abuse are applied.’
Domestic abuse, including coercive control, was a relevant factor, according to the report, with lessons needing to be learned by professionals ‘as widely and thoroughly as possible’ to ‘reduce the risk of such tragedies happening in the future’.
Professor Smith’s recommendations include prioritising Jersey’s proposed Domestic Abuse Law and a strategy to focus on early identification of domestic abuse, referral and support to victims and raising awareness of the causes and signs of abuse, including coercive control.
It also states that a register of ‘serious and repeat’ domestic abusers should be drawn up to help protect victims.
Other recommendations include the briefing of States police officers on better use of hearsay evidence to support ‘victimless’ prosecutions, which Superintendent Alison Fossey said was ‘really important’, citing a statistic that 61% of domestic abuse victims do not support the complaint/prosecution.
Supt Fossey said body-worn camera footage, evidence of injuries and recorded 999 calls could be used to support a prosecution without the victim needing to give a statement.
She said: ‘We need to recognise domestic abuse much earlier.’ She also confirmed that there would be a campaign to raise awareness about coercive control in October.
Speaking after the report’s publication, Home Affairs Minister Gregory Guida said Jersey’s proposed Domestic Abuse Law would be his ‘main priority’ when the States resumed sittings after the summer recess. The law is currently at the advanced drafting stage, but he said he hoped it could be introduced in the Assembly before the current term finished next year.
It could include a register, similar to that used for sex offenders, make coercive behaviour an offence and introduce protection orders before a charge to prevent contact. The independent chairwoman of the Jersey Safeguarding Partnership Board, Sarah Elliott, called Mrs Nisbet’s death a ‘deeply tragic event’.
She said the review that followed was ‘not a forensic investigation, nor are they about blame’.
It was a ‘complex’ case, she said, adding that Mr Nisbet’s mental health was ‘prioritised over the impact of the coercive control he exercised over his family members’.
Several attempts to arrange the detention of Mr Nisbet under the mental-health law failed, twice being blocked by him and on a third occasion the ‘authorised officer’ felt detention was not justified, according to the report. The family also wanted to avoid their son entering the criminal-justice system, the review noted.
In a contribution to the report, the family of Mrs Nisbet described her as ‘wonderful wife, mother, grandmother and friend’ who is ‘sorely missed’.
They said: ‘Losing Pamela has left a huge void in many people’s lives and the pain of losing her will never fade. It will never go away and she will always be loved and remembered with fondness.’
– What is coercive control?
CHARITY Women’s Aid defines coercive control as ‘an act or a pattern of acts of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse that is used to harm, punish, or frighten a victim’. It states that domestic abuse is not always physical, with this controlling behaviour ‘designed to make a person dependent by isolating them from support, exploiting them, depriving them of independence and regulating their everyday behaviour’. It is a criminal offence in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Examples include:
– Isolating the victim from friends and family.
– Taking control over aspects of their everyday life.
– Repeatedly putting the victim down.
– Humiliating, degrading or dehumanising them.
– Monitoring their time.
– Controlling finances.
– Making threats or intimidating them.
