LONDON, July 29 (UPI) -- People who kill an abusive spouse or partner could avoid a potential murder charge under a proposal to revise British law on killings with provocation.
Legal officials say the goal of the change in law is to balance the rights of women, The Daily Telegraph reported. Officials say that men who kill an unfaithful or even nagging wife are more likely to receive a lighter sentence than women who kill longtime abusers.
``When I was a practicing barrister I did many court cases defending battered women who killed their violent partners," said Vera Baird, the solicitor general. "The new partial defense of killing from losing self control from fear of serious violence would provide a tailored response to cases like these and make it easier for justice to be done."
Under the changes, battered partners, parents who kill pedophiles who have molested their children and women who kill rapists could be charged with manslaughter and get a shorter prison sentence if convicted than if they had been charged with murder.
