Kiena Dawes' domestic abuser is cleared from manslaughter charge after her suicide.

Ryan Wellings has not been found guilty of manslaughter following his girlfriend’s suicide. Preston Crown Court heard how Wellings had subjected Dawes to prolonged domestic abuse and was subsequently found guilty of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour against Dawes between January 2020 and July 2022 despite denying all allegations. 

Dawes, 23, left a note alongside her nine-month-old daughter, who she left in a car seat in her friend’s house in July 2022 before being found on a railway line in Lancashire. The note read ‘I was murdered. Slowly. Ryan Wellings killed me.’ The note was also partially addressed to her daughter in it reading ‘I’m sorry I let you go…the world turned their back on me. I was strong. I had dreams. I had a future at one point. That was taken away from me.’ She continued to write ‘I hope my life saves another by police services acting faster.’

The court heard of the prolonged abuse that began almost immediately from the pair becoming a couple in 2020. Wellings had had Dawes’ name tattooed on his face and body within weeks of being together, and had proceeded to propose within three months. Following this, Wellings proceeded to begin his intense long-term abuse against the 23-year old, with their engagement taking place just before the relationship was three months old. He had quickly began assaulting, demeaning and bullying her, with the police aware of a number of violent attacks taking place by Wellings. These included strangulation by an iPhone charger cable, pushing her head into a full bath that was run for her daughter, and turning a drill on in her face. The physical attacks were not the end, as Wellings had also told Dawes to kill herself shortly after threatening to throw her deceased father’s ashes out of a window. 

11 days before Dawes took her own life, Wellings had smashed a door into her face which left her unconscious, only to be woken up by the screams of her daughter. 

Separate from the abuse, Dawes had suffered from mental health problems before meeting Wellings, including emotionally unstable personality disorder. Her medical records had demonstrated that she had suffered with mental health problems since she was 13, and had experienced regular alcohol and drug use alongside suicidal thoughts and attempts, as Wellings’ defence team outlined. 

This case was the first time a defendant has been tried before a jury after facing a charge of the unlawful killing of his partner after a domestic abuse-associated suicide. 

After the verdicts were read out, Wellings made no reaction to the court. As he was led away he smiled and blew a kiss to his current girlfriend.