A former Army sergeant from Cornwall, England, who was jailed for threatening to kill one woman and trying to suffocate another during sex would have not been able to attack the second victim were it not for delays in the justice system. Martin Underwood had been drinking when he assaulted his first victim in 2021, striking her with a phone and pushing her in the stomach before threatening to kill her and himself with a knife. The victim described Underwood as controlling and dangerous, and stated that she has undergone extensive therapy as a result of the abuse.
Underwood’s second victim was attacked in August 2022 following an argument during sex. The victim reported that Underwood had held a plastic bag over her face and only removed it when she agreed to do what he demanded.
The victim of the knife offense, Elizabeth Hudson, spoke to the BBC and expressed that delays in the court system are causing distress and misery for victims. Hudson recalls believing she was going to die, having been slashed with the knife Underwood was holding as he pinned her in the kitchen of her home. She was able to escape to a neighbor’s home, but the attack left her in a state of panic and constant fear.
The majority of cases go through the system in just under a year, according to figures from the Ministry of Justice, but Underwood’s trial was one of hundreds affected by the barristers’ strike, resulting in a delay of 18 months after the attack. It was during this period that he attacked his second victim. After this was reported, Underwood was held on remand and eventually entered guilty pleas at a subsequent court hearing, meaning his case was adjourned for sentence.
According to a Ministry of Justice spokesperson, the government is investing £477m to tackle the crown court backlog, which increased due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The CPS stated that once South Yorkshire Police had submitted a full file of evidence, it authorized charges against Underwood within days. Underwood was jailed 671 days after he attacked Elizabeth, and the judge described the attacks as “serious and unpleasant.”
Despite the jail sentence and restraining orders being made, Ms. Hudson expressed feeling let down by the justice system, stating that it doesn’t put victims at the heart of it and doesn’t take the impact on their lives into account.