Katie Simpson's death exposes 'institutional misogyny' in PSNI

A review into how the death of a showjumper was handled has found "institutional misogyny" and "systemic failures" within the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The Katie Simpson review, commissioned by the Department of Justice, found that "not one officer thought seriously about abuse/control" in the initial police investigation.

Katie Simpson, 21, died six days after being admitted to hospital in Londonderry in 2020. Her death was initially treated as suicide.

Jonathan Creswell, a showjumping trainer and the partner of Ms Simpson's sister, was later charged with Katie's murder. He took his own life one day after the trial began in April 2024.

Justice Minister Naomi Long delivered the findings of the review in the Northern Ireland Assembly on Tuesday.

She said the report made for "uncomfortable reading" and set out in "stark and uncompromising detail what went wrong".

Ms Simpson's family was present as Ms Long asked assembly members to pause for a moment to remember Katie Simpson.

In a foreword to the review's report, Ms Simpson's mother Noeleen Mullan said it had been "hard to read", noting "so many things were missed, not done properly and it felt like there was a lack of care for Katie from the police".

The minister encouraged those reading the report to "reflect on the missed opportunities, both for Katie and the agencies that encountered her and her abuser over many years".

Long said the majority of the 16 recommendations were "policing focused".

"There is much room for improvement. Katie's death was concealed and staged as suicide and it is abundantly clear that investigative practices and mindsets must change," she said.

"Within policing coercive control must be recognised as a serious and potentially lethal factor. Patterns of behaviour, not isolated incidents, must drive assessments of risk."

"For too long abuse has been allowed to thrive in the shadows created by fear, silence, stigma and control," the minister told the Northern Ireland Assembly.

"We need to shine a light in those shadows. We need to remove the stigma and we need to speak openly and honestly about abuse.

"Avoiding these conversations does not protect victims - it entrenches harm."

The independent review, led by Dr Jan Melia, took about six months to complete and found that "when police endorse misogyny, as they do here, risk to women escalates".

"Not one officer thought seriously about abuse/control, Katie's lived experience was disregarded, clear warning signs were ignored, established protocols were treated as optional/discretionary, and police chose to privilege Creswell's account," it continued.

It found an urgent "cultural shift" with the police is needed.

The report said 37 other victims, including children as young as nine, had come forward to disclose abuse by Creswell.

Some of these reports involve allegations of sexual and physical abuse.

Many of the victims, like Katie Simpson, were just starting off in the equestrian world.

A separate investigation has been commissioned by the PSNI.

Two other alleged sex offenders have also been identified by the PSNI within the equestrian industry as part of this review.

The report said it was "apparent that Jonathan Creswell may have associated with known sex offenders".

It said it "also became apparent that there may be known individuals, currently operating with the equestrian world".

A police investigation "into these matters has been progressed" during the review.

The review concluded that Katie Simpson was "let down at every step" and that "police inaction rendered her invisible in her own murder, allowing Creswell to maintain control even after death".

Creswell sat at her hospital bed while she died.

The review also concluded that his "previous domestic history was not properly checked" and that the police "failed to check the system properly and only Creswell's driving offences were accessed".

The report also criticised other bodies, including social services and the health service, over safeguarding, as well as within the equestrian sector.

It said Creswell's grooming and abusive behaviour was "accepted in the equestrian community where he worked".

For the first time, the report revealed that Katie Simpson's sister, Christina, went to the police and disclosed that Creswell had "abused her, locked her up, groomed her, controlled her, and broken her bones".

Speaking after the publication of the report, Noeleen Mullan said it was "so good to hear that there were so many people came forward to the police" and she "really was well-loved by so many".

"I hope she's helped loads of people and I think she has," she said.

"You wonder why she was treated in this way but she mightn't have got the justice that she wanted, but I believe that people think they're above the law but you're not above god's law - no matter what you do you'll not get away with it."

Mullan said there needs to be better safeguarding around the equestrian world.

"I think girls' love for horses is an awful drive for them - it's very hard for young girls and I think a lot of the older girls that are in the industry really have to be looking around them and look after the young ones coming up because there won't be that many men who will."

Solicitor Kevin Winters of KRW Law said the family had taken "heart and encouragement to hear that there's so much positivity about what is being done and what can be done".

He said the report took "a lot of confidence" for them to engage with.

"It was a big step for them to engage and embrace this," he added.