Posted on 02/11/2013 8:14:51 AM PST by Responsibility2nd
(Newser) – A mother of four has killed herself in Britain after testifying that her former music teacher had sexually abused her years ago, the Telegraph reports. The body of Frances Andrade, 48, was discovered just days after she testified that Michael Brewer, 68, had regularly fondled her in the 1970s. The jury was not told of her death until after passing its verdict: guilty on one count of indecent assault but not guilty on five others due to insufficient evidence regarding dates.
Andrade had a difficult time on the witness stand under the grilling of a prosecuting attorney Kate Blackwell, who called her a liar and a fantasist. "You are hugely insulting, even though it's your job," Andrade told her. Now a charity for the abused and a senior British lawyer are calling on courts to change the way they handle sex abuse cases, the BBC and Guardian report. Despite her previous suicide attempts, Andrade was apparently told by police not to receive therapy until after the nearly two-year case was complete. (Read about an Army captain who testified that a general threatened to kill her if she revealed their sometimes-abusive relationship
I'm thinking it was unwise to pick at old wounds some 35 years after the fact. It just didn't turn out well for Mrs. Andrade.
these are wounds that never heal
so, what will be the sentence?
1 year in jail with weekends off? 4 years probation?
Yes, it looks like it was a misprint...
The mother-of-four, from Guildford, Surrey, who was married to acclaimed viola player Levine Andrade, was supported from the public gallery by one of her sons, but had a testing time in the witness box, being called a fantastist and liar by Kate Blackwell QC, Brewer’s barrister.
And people ask why victims often stay silent.
The poor woman was abused all over again, in public.
I wonder if “Miss Blackwell” is able to feel remorse?
[yeah, I know...she was “just doing her job”]
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