Woman's murder could have been prevented - family

The sisters of a woman murdered by her violent partner said they believed she would still be alive if police had taken her concerns seriously in the lead up to her death.

Tara Kershaw, 33, was strangled in her home in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, in January by Adam Barnard, 41, who was jailed for life with a minimum term of 19 years earlier this week.

Police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), said it was now investigating six Norfolk Constabulary employees for possible misconduct.

"They were called there for reports of non-fatal strangulation," said her sister Zoe Savva.

"Tara wasn't taken seriously - they believed Adam to be the victim and Tara to be the abuser and that wasn't the case.

"Had they arrested Adam and charged him with non-fatal strangulation, Tara would still be here."

Ms Savva, 37, who also lives in the town, added it meant restrictions were not placed on Barnard to prevent him from returning to the couple's home in Princes Road.

Her other sister Tanita Salih, 32, said she felt Ms Kershaw was not listened to because the mother-of-two was a "drinker".

The sisters said Ms Kershaw made it clear to police she was frightened Barnard would kill her if she reported his abuse to the authorities.

Ms Salih said: "She clearly said to them, if I tell you the full truth, he'll just come back and do it again."

The IOPC said it was looking at reports made to police between November 2023 and January 2024 and six officers or staff members have been served with conduct notices.

In a statement, it said: "A member of police staff and former police officers are being investigated for potential gross misconduct and a further four officers are being investigated for potential misconduct.

"This does not mean that disciplinary proceedings will necessarily follow - at the end of our investigation we will decide whether any officers should face disciplinary proceedings."

Barnard, whose trial heard he was a violent and convicted sex offender, was told on Monday he must serve a minimum of 19 years in jail.

During the trial, police said they had previous contact with the couple, including a call made by Ms Kershaw at about 18:00 GMT on 18 January to report Barnard hitting her lip.

Barnard was arrested on suspicion of common assault, taken in for questioning and released at 22:50, with no further action taken.

The following day - the date of the murder - police safeguarding staff and an independent domestic violence adviser called her mobile three times to check on her welfare, with the calls going unanswered, police said.

Barnard then approached an officer outside Great Yarmouth police station, shortly before 09:00 the next day, 20 January, and said: “I think I’ve killed my partner.”

A post-mortem examination found Ms Kershaw's death was consistent with compression to the neck and there was evidence of injuries to the bones of her neck from three different occasions.

Norfolk Police had already referred itself to the IOPC.

In a statement it said: "As the IOPC is independently investigating this incident we cannot comment on specific details. The constabulary continues to co-operate with the IOPC."

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