“She beat him and forced him to clean up her faeces” – Woman sentenced to four years imprisonment for assaulting and abusing husband over 20-year period

 

Tuesday, February 28, 2023 – An abusive wife who assaulted, taunted, threatened and humiliated her husband for 20 years has been sentenced to four years in prison.

Sheree Spencer, aged 45 and a mum of three, punched, kicked, slapped and bit her husband Richard during persistent ‘nasty’ attacks that left him in fear and feeling trapped.

She called him a ‘p****’ every day while beating him and forced him to clean up her faeces.

Spencer who worked as a prison security guard was sentenced at Hull Crown Court after leaving her partner with a permanently disfigured ear and damaging his laptops, phones and clothes.

Before sentencing her, Judge Kate Rayfield told her that the abuse of her husband was ‘the worst case of controlling and coercive behaviour I have seen’.

As well as a prison term, Spencer was given an indefinite restraining order against her victim.

Despite her sentencing, Spencer was still seen smiling as she left the dock to be taken down to the cells.

Spencer admitted coercive and controlling behaviour between January 2016 and June 2021 and three offences of assaulting her husband, causing actual bodily harm, between January and April 2020.

Michele Stuart-Lofthouse, prosecuting, said that the couple had been together since 2000 and lived in Bubwith, near Selby, in UK at the time. They have three young children.

Even after she was arrested, Spencer continued to ‘exert control’ over Richard during Family Court hearings, claiming she was the victim.

While sharing his story in court Spencer said: ‘I have had to seek help from my GP on several occasions.’

Videos shown to the court revealed ‘persistent, nasty physical and emotional abuse’ sometimes several times in a day.

Spencer ‘cowered sometimes on his hands and knees on the floor’ as he was threatened and assaulted.

His wife showed ‘utter contempt for him’ and sometimes ‘whispered in his face in the most sinister way’, the court heard.

She was also said to shout orders at him after drinking three bottles of wine a day.

Her defense lawyer Richard Pratt KC said that there was ‘little if anything’ that could be said in mitigation.

Pratt said: ‘It’s a shocking, distressing case. Alcohol played the most significant part in what happened.’