Mishcon DE REYA panel with Lucy Boynton: Application FOR ruth Ellis conditional pardon

70 years after her execution, the Mishcon Academy hosted a panel event detailing the case for a posthumous conditional pardon of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in the UK.

Mishcon de Reya Associate Grace Houghton was joined by Ruth's granddaughter Laura Enston, The Death Penalty Project Co-Founder Saul Lehrfreund, Matrix Chambers' Jessica Jones, who serves as Junior Counsel for Ruth's grandchildren, and actor Lucy Boynton who played Ruth in the ITV drama "A Cruel Love", to talk about the 1955 case, the current campaign to secure a conditional pardon, and the impact of this case and cases like it around the world.

Ruth’s grandchildren have been assisted in the production of the application for a posthumous conditional pardon, on a pro-bono basis, by Managing Partner James Libson, and Katy Colton, Grace Houghton, Alexandra Agnew and Elizabeth Fitton from Mishcon de Reya's Politics and Law Group.

In Brief:

60 years on since the Abolition of Death Penalty Act 1965 abolished capital punishment for murder in Britain, grandchildren of last woman hanged in the UK, Ruth Ellis, are formally requesting a posthumous conditional pardon from the Justice Secretary to recognise that, in light of all the circumstances of the case, her execution should not have taken place. She should have been reprieved. 

• The Application demonstrates Ellis was a victim of long-term, systematic emotional, sexual and physical abuse at the hands of her partner and others, which was not adequately taken into account in the criminal proceedings and by the then-Home Secretary on the question of a reprieve. 

• There is also evidence of prejudice amongst police and the then-Home Secretary, who had the power to grant a reprieve. 

The application details how evidence about the impact of the repeated and long-standing sexual, emotional and physical abuse Ruth suffered at Blakely’s (and others') hands was not given due consideration during or after her trial. It also highlights failings in the investigation of her case, her defence and ultimately the then-Home Secretary’s approach to the question of a delay or reprieve of her hanging, which was likely influenced by social prejudice and resistance to a growing campaign against the death penalty. 

A posthumous conditional pardon - which would recognise that Ruth's execution was unjust - would rightfully acknowledge Ruth as a victim of violent physical and mental abuse, manipulation and a deeply inadequate judicial process. It would correct a historical wrong and would send a clear message to future generations that there is no place for violence, misogyny or discrimination against women in the British judicial system. 

Head to the Mishon de Reya website to learn more about the campaign and the work of the Mishcon de Reya team.