Ruth Ellis granted conditional pardon

Ruth Ellis, the last woman executed in the United Kingdom, has been granted a posthumous conditional pardon by King Charles III on the advice of Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy. Ellis was hanged in 1955 for murdering her lover Ruth Ellis, but evidence of domestic abuse and coercive control was not considered at trial. The pardon replaces the death penalty with a sentence of life imprisonment, acknowledging a historic injustice. The application was brought by Ellis's grandchildren, including Laura Enston, and supported by MPs Pam Cox and Catherine Atkinson. Legal representatives from Mishcon de Reya, including Grace Houghton, argued that modern defenses like diminished responsibility could have reduced the conviction.