In anticipation of ITV’s new drama series ‘The Lady’[1] said to portray the ‘true crime story’ of a ‘rags to riches’ Royal aide of Sarah Ferguson, former Duchess of York, Harriet Wistrich, CEO of Centre for Women’s Justice, who represented Jane Andrews at her appeal in 2003, makes the following comment:
“Jane Andrews was convicted of the murder of Tom Cressman over 25 years ago. She long ago served her prison sentence and has attempted to move on, but due to her past employment with the now discredited section of the Royal family, she continues to be the subject of media interest, intensified each time when yet another one-sided TV programme is made about her case. Jane has not contributed to ‘The Lady’ despite it purportedly being about her life, nor has she contributed to any of the previous multiple TV documentaries made about her. The public are thus presented with a one-sided view that fails to explore why a vulnerable woman in her circumstances may have been driven to kill.
“Like many other women I have represented and we have campaigned for, the prosecution case and media coverage can distort the underlying story, relying on sexist tropes such as “fatal attraction killer” and “gold hunter”. Yet we know in many such cases there is an underlying and sometimes hidden history of abuse and control, as there was in the case of Sally Challen. In fact, the precedent created in the case of Sally Challen and our greater understanding of coercive control and its impact on those with underlying mental health vulnerabilities could well assist Jane Andrews in a fresh appeal, should she wish now to explore one.”
ENDS
[1] to be broadcast on ITV February 22
We have prepared a more in depth press briefing, which provides a context and background to the case of Jane Andrews.