5-Domestic Violence MURDERED: Clare Wood

Hi Warriors, i'm your host, ingrid. Today, i'm bringing you a story of a woman who was murdered at the hands of her ex-partner. Following her untimely death, her father relentlessly pursued in stating a policy that, in his words, would help give any vulnerable person a fighting chance. As a result of his persistence, the domestic violence disclosure scheme was rolled out in England and Wales on March 8, 2014. This is the story of Claire Wood. Claire's father found this letter in the back of one of her notebooks. It was written to her abuser. It reads Dear George, there is no easy way to say this, but I don't want to be with you. Too much has happened. I can't ever trust you. No matter what you do, you still scare me and I can't be with someone I'm frightened of. Leave me alone. That's all I ask. Don't contact me. That's the way it needs to be. I need to get on with my life. If you have any feeling for me, you'll let me do this. Don't use this as an excuse to go off the rails. Bear in mind, you were lucky enough not to go to prison again and I did give you a chance, and I had to do this by letter, because you just won't listen to me at all. I've told you before how I feel and you've chosen to ignore it, hoping it will go away. It hasn't. Each day I feel worse. I have to consider my daughter also and after all you've done, i can't have you back. It's not fair on her and she knows I'd never be happy with you. She can never trust you either. I want you to be well. Take care, i mean it, claire. It's believed this letter was written at some point in October 2008 after Claire had found out about her ex's various affairs. That was the first time she tried to end the relationship. Claire grew up in Batley, england, with her mother Sheila, brother Adam and stepfather Michael Brown. Michael described her as a canny lass with a wicked sense of humor. After being married to their mother for 10 years, michael officially adopted Adam and Claire when she was about 15 years old. Shortly after turning 18, claire moved to Manchester where she eventually met, fell in love with and married Justin. Justin was well liked within Claire's family. They had a happy marriage and soon welcomed a baby girl. Claire was later diagnosed at the age of 31 with bipolar disorder. Claire and Justin ended up separating around this time. They remained amicable and decided jointly that their daughter should reside primarily with Justin, yet allow Claire frequent visitation time. This arrangement would provide their daughter with a stable and loving environment while giving Claire the opportunity to focus on herself and mental health. Claire moved into a cute two-bedroom house with a red front door and a fenced-in garden on St Simon Street in Salford. Following her mother's death in February 2005 secondary to cancer, claire decided she needed to find love and a lifelong partner. After two failed relationships, she turned to online dating in 2007. Her profile revealed her sense of humor and stated she was looking for something beyond a one-night stand. George Appleton was a 40-year-old man. Claire met in a Facebook group. His activities listed on his profile page was quote wouldn't you like to know? His interests were music, computers, djing and films. George was very familiar with the internet dating scene and frequently used Facebook, myspace, plenty of Fish and Informed Consent. He also went by Lil Georgie, porgy and Red Fred on these sites. He lived near Claire at Adelphi Court in Sulford. After beginning a chat on Facebook, the two seemed to hit it off and agreed to meet for a date in person. The beginning of the relationship was blissful. Not surprisingly, he was quite complimentary and affectionate. The attention he gave her made her feel comfortable and attractive. She admired his confidence in easygoing, likeable, funny personality. She fell hard and quick for this good-looking and kind man and excitedly told her dad she was in love. Michael's initial joy for his daughter was soon replaced with an uneasy feeling. Claire and George traveled to meet her father in Batley following a visit with her brother. Michael already formed his opinion of George. Within the first few minutes of meeting He saw a balding, unshaved, scruffy man. He was unable to pinpoint the source of his feelings, but he sensed a bad aura about George. After Claire and George left, michael called Adam to discuss their impressions. They both had the same initial reaction. Michael told Claire he was not impressed with George, but she insisted this was the love of her life so he didn't press matters. Acknowledging his apprehension, claire eventually disclosed to Michael that George had done previous prison time. She explained it was just due to motoring offenses. Michael, who worked in the prison system, found this unlikely. Regardless of the true reason behind his convictions, michael could not be affiliated with George because of his current position. He asked for Claire not to bring him back around. George, on the other hand, remained his overly charming self, only deepening Claire's affection for him. At the beginning of 2008, they announced plans to marry. Michael spoke up then. He told Claire the marriage would strain their relationship and he begged her to slow things down. Later that same year, in October, claire was browsing through George's phone. She came across a message from another woman. When she confronted George about it, he admitted to having a relationship with not just that woman, but three others as well. That's when an intensified side of George she had not seen before emerged. He became exaggeratedly angry and accused Claire of betraying his trust and invading his privacy. His posturing and demeanor frightened Claire, who thought he may become physically violent toward her. Claire decided to end their romance at that very point, realizing that the timeframe in which victims attempt to leave their abusers is one of the most critical and dangerous. Just five days later, on October 7th, claire filed a complaint with the police. George had become increasingly aggressive. He threatened to beat her, kill her, vandalize her property and burn her house down. You see, when an abuser recognizes they are losing control of their victim, they often step up their tactics. After creating the file, the police escorted Claire back to her house and inspected it before leaving Just the next day, less than 24 hours after giving her initial statement, claire called 999. George had returned to her house and was frantically beating at the door demanding to be let in. George was gone when police finally arrived. Hearing Claire's description of George's behavior, the officer provided her with local domestic violence resources and recommended she have her window secured and locks changed on her doors. He then found George at his flat and arrested him. George was released on bail a few hours after being held at the police station. He was told he could not contact Claire nor go anywhere near where she lives. Claire called 999 again on October 9th when George returned to pounding on her door. Police were unable to attend to the call until 24 hours later. One month passed by and Claire and George began seeing each other again. Now, someone unfamiliar with the world of domestic abuse and violence may find this surprising, but for those of us who have experienced with it know this behavior all too well. Regardless of the abundant reasons given to leave, it often takes an average of seven times before a victim is able to leave their abuser for good. George appeared in court for a hearing in November. During that hearing, a letter Claire had written to the police was read. It had asked for all charges against George to be dropped. She felt he had changed his ways and was no longer a threat to her. This letter did not impact the decisions made that day. The terms of the restraining order remained. George was to have no contact with Claire and was not to go near her residence. After George verbalized to the court, the original terms prohibited him from visiting friends who lived on Claire Street. Things were amended. He was now allowed to be on the street, but he was still not to approach Claire. That Christmas, claire spent the holidays with her family in Batley. She was described to be in good spirits, although she did confide in Michael that George was quote making a nuisance of himself, but she didn't fully describe how he had been continuously harassing her via phone and social media. Michael tried to persuade her to stay in Batley until things calmed down, but Claire refused, stating she had friends and self-heard and didn't want to be chased off. I found conflicting dates on this next incident, but somewhere between January 17th and January 19th Claire once again made a report with police. George had convinced Claire to visit him at his flat. She was under the impression he wanted to talk and smooth things over. Unfortunately, that wasn't his intent. George sexually assaulted her. Following her report, police arrested George. However, after 12 hours in custody he was released given insufficient evidence. While George was in custody, the police handed the case files to the domestic violence division, who in turn recommended the installation of a panic alarm. Following up on Claire's initial statement four months prior regarding threats of arson, a fire risk assessment was conducted at Claire's home. Her letter box, which is the mail slot in the front door, was removed to avoid any potential of accelerant being poured into her home. January 22nd, claire notified the police that George had been attempting to contact her through social media. When police were able to respond early the following morning, george was arrested. Once at the station, george was released because a custody sergeant felt the breach was just a minor offense. Before I go on, i want to fill you in on a bit more of the background information. Obviously, george's previous prison time was not because of driving offenses. He had several harassment charges against women and even was charged with kidnapping a woman at knife point. Carol Agnew described her relationship with George, which began in February 2004. She mentioned how things were great in the beginning. Then she slowly began to notice little things, little lies, little bits of anger. He wouldn't let her go off on her own. He became increasingly jealous. His anger progressed into lasting days or even weeks. At one point he had put his hands around her neck. After she ended the relationship. He stalked her. He threatened that he would throw acid in her face, that he would kill her. I just want to throw a few bits of information on strangulation in here quick. Thankfully, more attention has been brought to this topic, possibly secondary to the Gabby Petito findings. According to the Stringulation Training Institute, near-fatal strangulation occurs in up to 68% of women who report intimate partner violence. 97% of those were strangled by hands, 38% lost consciousness, 9% were pregnant and 70% believed they were going to die. Gail Starr, a clinical coordinator for sexual assault nurse examiners, states that a person who has been strangled during a domestic violence attack is 750% more likely to be killed by their offender in the next year. Also mentioned was 82% of law enforcement homicides are committed by someone with a strangulation history. Strangulation can kill someone within minutes. Even in cases where the victim does not lose consciousness, lasting effects may be present. I encourage you to read through the information available on the Stringulation Training Institute website for more information. That link is in the show notes. George had been reported for his behavior online. Police received dozens of reports from women who claimed he had suspicious behavior either online or when they would meet up in person. Claire disclosed her concerns with the authorities. She had noticed within the first few weeks of dating that George was unnecessarily jealous. He was always questioning who she was going out with, who she was contacting on Facebook. His behavior escalated. He yelled, broke windows, punched holes in walls, ripped the phone off the wall and attempted to rape her. On January 30th, george appeared in court and was given a fixed penalty for causing criminal damage at Claire's house. There was no mention of the reported sexual assault. There is no connection of his previous convictions, of the previous accounts and reports given by other women. None of the information was ever relayed to the domestic violent shelter that was assisting Claire. The fact that Claire had filed four reports in four months didn't leave an impression. On February 6th 2009, michael became concerned that neither he nor his son had heard from Claire for a few days. Michael had left multiple messages, yet she had not returned his calls. He contacted Claire's ex-husband, justin, and requested he go check on her. When Justin arrived to Claire's house, nothing concerning jumped out at him. Claire's car was parked in the driveway. The front door was locked. Claire didn't answer. When he knocked, peering through the closed and locked windows, the house seemed to be in good order. He walked around to the back of the house where he found the back door to be unlocked. He slowly began to walk through the house, calling Claire's name. As he looked around, he again noted nothing seemed to be out of place. When he approached Claire's master bedroom, he was greeted with a horrific scene. The charred remains of the mother of his daughter was laying on her bed. An ash tray was carefully placed on top of her body in an attempt to give the impression she had fallen asleep while smoking. Despite this, police were able to quickly determine she had been strangled. Further investigation revealed she had been beaten, raped, strangled, then sent on fire. Police believe George had entered Claire's home by using an old key he still had. He then waited in her bathroom for her to return home. He attacked her when she walked into her bedroom. She didn't have time to realize what was happening. She didn't have time to use the panic alarm. George immediately went on the run. He apparently had initially gone to a friend's house where he remained for a few hours. He then abruptly left. A nationwide manhunt was initiated, with a criminal profile and details of his vehicle. An urgent alert was released, warning any woman that had been in contact with George online to cease immediately, as he posed a grave threat. Eventually, his red escort was found parked near a former pub which had long been abandoned. There was evidence George had been sleeping in his car. Police entered the dilapidated building on February 12th and found the body of George Appleton. It was a parent. He had hung himself. I couldn't find any definitive reports on the day George actually took his own life, but it's noted the location was just half a mile away from where he had murdered Claire. Following these events, it became evident there were extreme breakdowns in the handling and communicating of information. None of George's previous convictions were relayed to Claire because of loopholes in the Data Protection Act. Still, michael felt that if Claire had been aware of George's sordid past, she may still be alive today. That is what prompted Michael in his relentless pursuit of what became known as Claire's law. This two-part scheme gives any individual the ability to inquire about details of their partner's past as their quote right to ask. In fact, any family member or friend of that individual can also place a request. Police are therefore allowed to disclose the information available, utilizing a national database. The second part of Claire's law, the quote right to know, allows police to use their own discretion to proactively inform individuals in relationships with known abusers. As I stated in the introduction, claire's law, also known as the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, was rolled out in England and Wales in March of 2014. Variations of Claire's law can also be found in Canada and Australia. According to the National Centre for Domestic Violence, during the year 2022, there were 2.4 million adults abused in the United Kingdom. 876,000 domestic abuse calls were made to police. The social and economic cost of domestic abuse for the year was 66 billion pounds. The criminal injuries helpline reveals 11,556 right-to-ask applications were received in the year ending March 2020. 37% of those resulted in disclosure. There were 8,531 right-to-know requests received in the same year. 52% resulted in disclosure. Michael unfortunately passed away in 2020 due to an illness, but not before he was able to witness the good that came from Claire's law. There is no doubt that because of his dedication, many lives have been saved. While Claire's memory carries on, if you are in the United Kingdom and believe yourself or someone you know is a victim of domestic abuse, call the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808-2000-247. They are available 24 hours a day. If you need immediate assistance in the UK, call 999. Links to sources used for this episode can be found in the show notes. I want to throw in a quick thank you to Jessica for submitting Catch My Breath by Kelly Clarkson for the 1-3 podcast Spotify playlist. Thank you for listening and I'll be back next week with another story for you. Until then, have each other's back, stay strong and always remember you are not alone. Find more information, register as a guest or leave a review by going to the website 1and3podcastcom. That's the number 1, i-n the number 3, podcastcom. 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