A WOMAN who suffered vile abuse at the hands of her ex is now living in fear again after being told he will win back his freedom under the government’s early release scheme.
Grace Bennett, 22, used photos on her phone to convict Taylor Roddy, 27, after he subjected her to a horrific campaign of – that saw her bitten and beaten – between January and September 2024.
The brute was jailed for three years at Truro Crown Court on May 26 this year.
But Grace said she was horrified to hear he would be coming out early – with his sentence slashed by six months under the government’s plans.
Prisoners held for all but the most serious offences can now leave prison after serving just a third of their sentence, rather than half after plans brought in by Sir Keir Starmer.
“How protected am I really going to be once he’s out?” she told The Sun.
“It just feels like the two year fight that took such a big chunk of me wasn’t worth it.”
Grace said she only found out Roddy was now being released in May next year after she spoke to her victim liaison officer.
And she called on the government to rethink their prison plans.
Grace said: “I think if I were going to have a message for the government [and Andy Burnham], I find myself thinking there should be or should have been a real conversation about the kinds of people you’re willing to early release into the public.
“I was really surprised to find that domestic abusers were part of the crowd that were being released because, to me, that seems like common knowledge that they aren’t the kind of people you’d release.”
She added: “Not only is it dangerous, but it’s so damaging to everyone who fought so hard to get these people into prison.
“What kind of faith are we supposed to have in the justice system if we spend more of our lives suffering and fighting for justice than they have to spend facing consequences?”
“He was a monster. This was not just a bad relationship, it was abuse,” she said, adding that it had permanently changed the way she lives her life – from meeting new people to moving around.
Speaking about the devastating impact of his abuse, Grace revealed she was “gaslit” into the relationship.
But she was found herself trapped and a network of abuse, being choked, slapped, shoved and bitten.
Grace was also psychologically controlled through jealousy, accusations of cheating, and online bullying orchestrated by Roddy.
And she then began sinking into debt amid the abuse.
The judge blasted Roddy saying he had no remorse and warned that any young woman he had a relationship with could be at risk of domestic abuse.
Yet – Grace now faces her abuser being back on the streets due to the early release scheme.
Grace described the atmosphere in that flat – stripped of furniture because they kept having to sell belongings to cover rent – as dehumanising, leaving her feeling like a “monkey in a circus”.
In March, while out in St Ives, the jury heard how Roddy rugby-tackled her to the ground, leaving her leg bruised and swollen and her arm shredded.
The court was also told of two occasions when he bit her, and of another incident in which he grabbed her arm, pulled her to the floor and left her so distressed she fled to her workplace in her dressing gown after he snatched her phone.
She also recounted being held in a chokehold so tight she could not breathe, striking Roddy with a nearby router to get him to release her.
As well as physical violence, prosecutors said Roddy subjected the victim to sustained and verbal abuse.
Grace met Roddy when she was just 19 back in 2023, while the pair were both working front of house in St Ives, Cornwall, where he appeared to be calm and charming.
She recounted how the relationship had moved quickly and within about a week she had moved in with him.
“Everyone thought he was amazing and so nice and how lucky I was,” she said.
“But I want everyone to know what type of person he was and to help prevent this happening ever in the future because I couldn’t live with myself knowing it could happen again.”
As part of the trial, jurors heard a voice recording made on 29 March 2024 capturing him shouting in rage.
Domestic abuse - how to get help
DOMESTIC abuse can affect anyone - including men - and does not always involve physical violence.
Here are some signs that you could be in an abusive relationship:
- Emotional abuse – Including being belittled, blamed for the abuse – gaslighting – being isolated from family and friends, having no control over your finances, what you where and who you speak to
- Threats and intimidation – Some partners might threaten to kill or hurt you, destroy your belongings, stalk or harass you
- Physical abuse – This can range from slapping or hitting to being shoved over, choked or bitten.
- Sexual abuse – Being touched in a way you do not want to be touched, hurt during sex, pressured into sex or forced to have sex when you do not consent.
If any of the above apply to you or a friend, you can call these numbers:
- The Freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge on 0808 2000 247 for free at any time, day or night
- Men who are being abused can call Respect Men’s Advice Line on 0808 8010 327 or ManKind on 0182 3334 244
- Those who identify as LGBT+ can ring Galop on 0800 999 5428
- If you are in immediate danger or fear for your life, always ring 999
Remember, you are not alone.
1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men will experience domestic abuse over the course of their lifetime.
Every 30 seconds the police receive a call for help relating to domestic abuse.
The court was told that Roddy also frequently accused her of cheating, posted allegations about her online, and spread claims to members in an effort to humiliate her.
He also controlled who she could speak to, repeatedly demanded to know her whereabouts and insisted she share her location so he could monitor her movements.
“I just felt completely alone. Because I went from speaking with my friends and my mum to not speaking to them at all,” she said.
On one occasion, he pushed her outside naked and locked her out.
She said the final straw came on her 20th birthday in Plymouth when Roddy slapped her across the face in public.
“When he slapped me across the face, I was just like, that’s it, I’m done,” she said.
In sentencing, the judge described the “appalling” psychological coercion, and emotional manipulation in what a judge described as a “deeply disturbing pattern of abuse”.
For Grace, the sentence brought some relief, but not closure.
She said: “I have nightmares that he is in my house controlling me in front of my friends and my family and people are just laughing at me.”
Prosecutors argued the case fell into the highest category of seriousness for , pointing to repeated violence, damage to property, conduct intended to maximise fear and distress and behaviour designed to humiliate her publicly.
Sentencing, His Honour Judge James Adkin said Roddy’s behaviour towards his former partner during the relationship was appalling.
“You have no insight into the way that you behaved in that relationship and that you have deeply ingrained behavioural traits whereby I fear for any young woman that you’re in a relationship with in the future that they may well again be subjected to ,” he said.
The judge also imposed a ten-year restraining order banning Roddy from contacting the victim directly or indirectly, going to the street where she lives and making any reference to her on social media.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Domestic abuse devastates lives. We’re investing £1 billion in victim support, putting specialists in 999 call centres and strengthening protections for survivors.
“We acted to keep the most dangerous offenders behind bars, but the prison crisis we inherited meant going further risked the system collapsing and police being unable to make arrests.
“Those released face the toughest ever controls, including world-first restriction zones and electronic tagging, with victims having a say over licence conditions.”
