Mother of murdered Megan Newborough wants Prime Minister to change 'pathetic' sentencing laws
Rajiv Popat went to meet Megan Newborough's parents, who have written to the Prime Minister
The mother of Megan Newborough, who was brutally murdered by her work colleague, has signed a letter to the Prime Minister calling for tougher sentences for killings inside the home.
Ross McCullam, 30, strangled Megan, 23, before cutting her throat and dumping her body in a Leicestershire country lane on Friday 6 August 2021.
The pair had started seeing each other and he had invited her over to his home for the evening.
Her mother Elaine Newborough, who is from Nuneaton, is one of three parents who have signed a letter to Rishi Sunak.
It is also signed by the mothers of murdered Ellie Gould and Poppy Devey Waterhouse.
In an interview with ITV News Central Mrs Newborough said: ''If a knife is taken to a park and a person is stabbed, their starting point is 25 years.
"Our girls were murdered in the home, the home is supposed to be the safest place it is your comfort. You are supposed to feel safe in the home.
"Yet our girls were all murdered in the home, and yet the sentences are not as severe. It makes no sense.
"Their starting sentence is 15 years."
Mrs Newborough added: "It has been a challenge every day.
"We've got fantastic family support, and we can't get through this without them."
In the letter, the three mothers said: "By handing out lesser minimum term sentences to these murderers you are in fact victim blaming.
"Our daughters knew their murderers so, in the government’s eyes, they have to take some blame.
"Is this what you really think? Ellie was doing A-Level revision, Poppy had been asleep and was in bed, Megan was on a date.
"Surely a perpetrator capable of such a despicable crime to someone they knew and were once fond of is just as dangerous if not more than the stranger killing in the street.
"Your own statistics clearly show that 59% of women are killed by partners/ex-partners and only 9% by strangers, so stop trying to grab headlines with obvious comments and start punishing these violent perpetrators of Domestic Homicide.
They added: "Make their starting term sentence tariff 25 years and not leave it at the pathetic 15 years it is currently.
"It’s demeaning to those lives taken in such horror and the families left in tatters behind."
McCullam, who initially admitted manslaughter, claimed he could not be guilty of murdering Megan because he acted after a loss of control.
However, the jury disagreed and McCullam was convicted of murder following a six-week trial at Leicester Crown Court.
In a statement the Ministry of Justice said: “These were horrific crimes and our thoughts remain with the families of Ellie Gould, Poppy Devey Waterhouse and Megan Newborough.
“Cases such as these are exactly why we are changing the law so cowards who murder their partners at the end of a relationship face longer behind bars.”
Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk KC, said: "Cowards who murder their partners should face the full force of the law.
"Our reforms will give judges the power to punish murderers for the added pain and trauma they inflict through ‘overkill’ as well as ensuring that those who coercively control their victims or kill them at the end of a relationship face longer behind bars."
Justice Minister, Edward Argar, said: "Too many women are murdered every year by those they should feel safest with.
"This government is working tirelessly to tackle violence against women, and these changes will mean perpetrators spend longer behind bars by taking greater account of the specific factors which are all too present in these horrific cases."