Jane Longhurst
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Jane Longhurst was a special needs teacher and musician living in Brighton, England who died on 14 March 2003; she was 31. Her partly decomposed body was found burning in woodland in West Sussex on 19 April. When arrested, Graham Coutts, her best friend's partner, admitted causing her death. He had first hidden the body in a shed, then in an empty flat, and finally in a storage centre -- where he had visited it nine times in a three-week period. Coutts claimed that Jane had died accidentally during consensual asphyxial intercourse, although the prosecution maintained that there was nothing to suggest that Coutts and Jane had ever been lovers.
[edit] Trial
At his murder trial, he confessed to a long-standing neck fetish and obsession with strangulation. His testimony, confirmed by other witnesses stated that he had engaged in breath control play with several consenting partners on more than 200 occasions without incident over several years. He had spoken with his GP about his obsession and sought the help of a psychiatrist 3 years before the killing. Eventually, he started to access violent pornography on the Internet (especially simulated strangulation, rape and necrophilia). He had downloaded a concentration of strangulation images the day before Jane's death. This, according to the prosecution, had caused his dangerous sexual behaviour and murderous intent. Some doubt this explanation, since the behaviour preceded the exposure to such pornography by about five years. No evidence of premeditation was presented to the jury.
Graham Coutts was convicted of Jane's murder and began serving a 26 year minimum prison term. He has maintained his innocence, and pursued appeals on a variety of grounds. On 19 July 2006, the Law Lords overturned the murder conviction, ruling that the jury should have been presented with a possible manslaughter verdict. This verdict would have been appropriate had the jury believed that the death was an accident caused by Mr Coutts' negligence. On 19 October 2006 his conviction was quashed and a re-trial ordered.
[edit] Criminalization of possession of "extreme pornography"
The possible link with what the Government has termed "extreme pornography" led to a campaign spearheaded by Longhurst's mother Liz and her sister Sue Barnett, and supported by MP Martin Salter, to criminalise the possession of "extreme pornographic material", whether or not the participants consented, and would include "realistic depictions" of such acts. The campaign collected a petition of over 50,000 signatures calling for a ban on "extreme internet sites promoting violence against women in the name of sexual gratification", although the proposed law extends beyond this. This motivated the Home Office to consult on possible changes to the law. Although the consultation found 63% of responses opposed strengthening the law to address the "challenges of the Internet", the government intends to introduce a new extreme pornography possession law as soon as practicable. The possession of such material would be punishable by up to three years imprisonment. The SM group Unfettered has created a campaign, Backlash, in opposition to such changes.
[edit] External links
- Lords overturn murder conviction of musician obsessed with violence
- Teacher murder conviction quashed
- Jane Longhurst Trust "In Cyberspace no-one hears the children crying ...start listening NOW"
- Daily Telegraph interview with Liz Longhurst
- Backlash opposes these changes.
- Summary of responses to the Consultation on the Possession of Extreme Pornographic Material
