Watchdog revisits handling of domestic abuse death

Daniela Espirito Santo was pronounced dead at her home in Grantham in April 2020 having reported an assault by partner Julio Jesus the previous day

The police watchdog has confirmed it is reinvestigating Lincolnshire Police's handling of a case in which a woman died after being assaulted by her abusive partner.

Daniela Espirito Santo, 23, was pronounced dead at her home in Grantham in the early hours of 9 April 2020 having reported an assault by partner Julio Jesus to the force the previous day.

Jesus attacked Ms Santo after being released from police custody on bail for another assault matter, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said.

He was initially charged with manslaughter but that was dropped due to a lack of evidence linking the attack and her death. Jesus was instead charged with assault and jailed for 10 months.

A jury inquest last October found Ms Espirito Santo was unlawfully killed and that domestic abuse and the assault caused emotional distress which triggered a heart condition and subsequent cardiac arrest.

There were also missed opportunities by police to safeguard Ms Espirito Santo, including a failure to record all relevant offences and a lack of consideration whether coercive and controlling behaviour was involved in the abuse.

The jury also heard a police sergeant joked about strangulation while discussing the case with a colleague.

The original IOPC investigation found no indication any police officer had behaved in a manner that may have breached police standards of professional behaviour and would justify bringing disciplinary proceedings.

However, the IOPC said it was reinvestigating the case in light of evidence that came out at the inquest and representations from Ms Espirito Santo's family.

IOPC director Emily Barry said: "A matter can only be reinvestigated by the IOPC if there are compelling reasons to do so and it's in the public interest. We believe that criteria is met.

"A reinvestigation will enable us to further scrutinise the issues and make decisions that factor in all of the evidence now available, including the custody CCTV footage from 8 April 2020 that has come to light and captures potentially inappropriate comments in relation to the incident."

"We will continue to keep Ms Espirito Santo's family informed of the situation and report the results of the new investigation in due course," she added.

Lincolnshire Police said it was cooperating with the investigation.

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