Client Accused of Making Threats to Kill - Case Closed

Case study summary

Our client was accused of threatening to kill his wife in front of paramedics. By making the police and CPS aware of his wife’s serious illness, and the fact that the words were said in pure frustration at the lack of support they had received, we persuaded them to drop the case.

Case study

Our client was arrested following an incident in Bristol in November 2025. Police had been called to his address after paramedics reported that he had made threats to kill his wife whilst they were trying to treat her. He was arrested, interviewed, and released on bail with conditions which prevented him from returning home or contacting his wife.

After his arrest, our client contacted us for urgent support and advice about the allegation and the impact of his bail conditions. He and his wife were an elderly couple who had been married for over 40 years and had never been separated during this time. Our client's wife had been severely ill for more than 6 years, and he had become her main carer. He explained that he had said something along the lines of, "If you do not help her, I will kill her and put her out of her misery" but that it was not a genuine threat. It was cleat that this was an outburst made in desperation because our client felt that his wife’s serious illness was not being taken seriously by medical professionals or social services.

Our client also informed us that he had been arrested for a similar incident the previous year and had received an out-of-court disposal. This created a significant challenge. Where there has already been a previous disposal for a similar allegation, it can be much harder to persuade the police or Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that a prosecution should be avoided. Nevertheless, our expert lawyers identified that there was a strong argument that this case should also not proceed to court.

Once instructed, we immediately contacted the officer in charge of the case and the duty solicitor who had represented our client at the police station. This allowed us to understand what had been said in interview, what evidence the police were relying on, and what stage the investigation had reached. Our client had admitted making the comments, but he had also explained his remorse, the circumstances in which the words were said, and that he had never intended to harm his wife.

We maintained regular communication with the officer in charge. Although the officer appeared sympathetic to our client’s circumstances, the previous out-of-court disposal meant that the decision could not simply be resolved by the officer alone. We therefore prepared a letter of representations to the CPS asking for the matter to be considered carefully in light of its exceptional background. We also gathered character references from people who knew our client and could speak to his character, his devotion to his wife, and the strain he had been under while caring for her.

We argued that, although the allegation was serious, the circumstances were highly unusual. Our client’s words were the product of desperation, exhaustion, and a genuine concern that his wife was not receiving the medical care she urgently needed. We also explained that a prosecution would risk causing further harm to both our client and his wife, who had already been separated by the bail conditions during an extremely difficult period.

In March 2026, the CPS returned its decision to not take the matter any further. This was an extremely important outcome for our client. It allowed him to return home, move forward without a criminal prosecution hanging over him, and focus on his wife’s health and their future together.