A man who violently abused and coercively controlled his partner has had his suspended sentence quashed following an intervention by the Attorney General.
Philip Humphreys, 39, from Stoke-on-Trent, has had his suspended sentence quashed and replaced with a two year and four month prison sentence after it was referred to the Court of Appeal by the Attorney General, Lord Hermer KC, under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.
The court heard that Humphreys and his partner began their relationship in April 2022 and quickly moved in together. However, Humphreys soon became controlling and coercive.
He repeatedly accused her of wanting to have sex with other men, constantly checked where she was and controlled what she wore.
Humphreys took around £6,000 from the victim, with the majority being spent on drugs, threatened to kill himself, aggressively shouted at her, and threw furniture.
Whilst on holiday, Humphreys violently assaulted the victim, which included strangling her and dragging her backwards. He only stopped when a hotel receptionist disturbed him.
After they broke up, Humphreys continued to intimidate the victim, repeatedly driving past her house.
Attorney General Lord Hermer KC said:
"Philip Humphreys' carried out a sustained physical and psychological campaign of abuse against his victim, who must have been in a constant state of fear. My thoughts today are with the victim, and I commend her bravery for coming forward."
"Philip Humphreys is a violent man, and I welcome the court's decision to increase his sentence. I hope this case serves a strong warning to domestic abusers that we will use the full force of the law to keep violent abusers off our streets."
On 7 March 2025, Philip Humphreys was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment suspended for two years, with 200 hours of unpaid work and a 25 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement Days for one count of controlling and coercive behaviour.
On 23 May 2025, his sentence was increased to two years and four months' imprisonment after it was referred to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.
