My teenage daughter was stabbed 13 times with our kitchen knife – ‘bad’ law means her killer ex could be free at 30
A mother has spoken of her pain after her teenage daughter was stabbed 13 times with the family’s kitchen knife.
Ellie Gould, 17, was deadly with a knife by her jilted ex-boyfriend Thomas Griffiths, 18, at her family home in Calne, Wilts, in May 2019.
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She was discovered in a pool of blood by her father Matthew after Griffiths, then 17, snapped when Ellie rejected his pleas to get back together.
The unfeeling killer had the knife in Ellie’s neck and put it in her hands to commit a fake suicide before trying to clean up the crime scene.
Heartbroken mother Carole, 53, has since expressed her fears that Griffiths will be released early.
Sick and crazy Griffiths that was sentenced for life after the horror.
But a “bad” law could see him released at age 30, after serving just 12 and a half years.
The minimum term Griffiths spends behind bars would have been at least ten years longer had he not murdered Ellie in her own home.
If his frenzied attack had taken place on the street, where he would have had a gun, he would have been serving a minimum prison sentence of 25 years.
Carole is now campaigning to change the law so that other grieving relatives can have peace knowing that murderers get 25 years no matter what.
She bravely told the Mirror: “He destroyed our lives. You try to put it in the back of your mind or distract yourself, but it’s always there.
‘They should go and see these women in the morgue with their stab wounds.
“We had to go see Ellie in the morgue with all the stab wounds in the side of her neck.”
Ellie would have celebrated her 22nd birthday this month, but she did instead tragically remains 17 forever.
Matthew and I just looked at each other and knew it was her boyfriend
Carole Gould
Carole said her daughter’s life before that chilling day was “full of promise.”
Reliving the moment she found out Ellie had been stabbed, she said: ‘My husband, Matthew, came home first and called me in hysterics.
“He told me to come home because Ellie had been in a terrible accident.
“I jumped in the car and had all these thoughts racing through my head, then a police car sped past me with the sirens on.
“There were so many ambulances and police cars in front of the house that I had to park down the street, and I sprinted into the driveway and saw Matthew sobbing.
How to get help
WOMEN’S Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Contact charities for help, including Women’s Aid’s live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarize yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without saying anything, but calling “55” instead.
- Make sure you always have some money with you, including change for a phone booth or bus ticket.
- If you suspect your partner is going to attack you, try going to a lower-risk part of the house, such as where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where knives or other weapons are likely to be present. Avoid rooms where you could become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you could be locked in a closet or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid offers a live chat service – Available on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on weekends from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
You can also call the free 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
“I asked him what was wrong, and he turned to me and said, ‘Ellie is dead’.”
Carole explained how she was sitting in a police car with her husband when officers asked about Ellie’s friends and whether she had a boyfriend.
She added: “When we were taken to the police station and told this was now a murder investigation.
“Me and Matthew just looked at each other and knew it was her boyfriend.”
Carole would meet Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper today to discuss important changes.
She added: “There is a 10-year difference in the minimum sentence if you kill someone in a house compared to if you kill someone on the street.
‘Ellie’s death was gruesome and intimate, but the sentence is lighter.
“To me, that diminishes women’s lives.
‘Griffiths exhibited controlling behavior before he killed Ellie – he had constantly harassed her to go to his house.
“He is a danger to women and should never be allowed outside.”
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has been contacted for comment.