Kiena Dawes accused told her ‘hitting you is like hitting a man’, court hears

A antheral accused of the manslaughter of a young parent told his alleged unfortunate “hitting you is similar hitting a man”, a tribunal heard.

Hairdresser Kiena Dawes, 23, near her nine-month-old girl with a friend, on with a termination enactment and took her ain beingness connected a railway enactment aft suffering years of maltreatment from her spouse Ryan Wellings, 30, Preston Crown Court has heard.

Vulnerable Ms Dawes, who had a past of fragile intelligence health, near the enactment which claimed “I was murdered” and that Wellings had “killed me”.

Wellings, of Bispham, Lancashire, denies manslaughter, battle and controlling and coercive behaviour to Ms Dawes betwixt January 2020 and her decease connected July 22, 2022.

Prosecutors told the assemblage of 7 women and 5 men that Wellings’ alleged unit was utilized to “grind” down Miss Dawes, starring to her taking her ain life.

Wellings’ defence claims Ms Dawes’ accusations against him are either untrue oregon exaggerated and immoderate injuries she suffered earlier her decease were a effect of his attempts to restrain her oregon accidental.

On the 2nd time of the proceedings Miss Dawes’s champion friend, Kacie Valentine, was asked astir what her person had told her astir her narration with Wellings.

Ms Valentine said she felt it “weird” that Wellings had got a tattoo of Kiena’s sanction connected his cervix conscionable a week aft gathering her.

Later she discovered Miss Dawes had fallen retired with Wellings and moved to unrecorded with a person successful Dorset and was “back to her mean self”.

But she past received a photograph from Miss Dawes showing a ringing connected her digit and discovered Wellings had projected to her connected a formation with a banner saying, “Will you wed me?” and she had said yes to the proposal.

Ms Valentine said connected astir 5 occasions Miss Dawes told her Wellings had been convulsive towards her, leaving her with injuries.

These included a chopped connected her leg, bruises to her ribs and a achromatic eye.

Ms Valentine said Miss Dawes had told her that erstwhile Wellings would onslaught her, helium would accidental to her: “Hitting you is similar hitting a man.”

Ms Valentine said sometimes her person would travel and enactment astatine her location due to the fact that Wellings would “binge connected portion and cocaine”.

The assemblage were shown messages from Miss Dawes to Wellings which read: “Coke is what’s gone wrong. I can’t bring a babe up similar that. I told you 100 times not to bargain immoderate more.”

Miss Dawes told Wellings the drugs made him “aggressive” but his connection effect read: “Come on. Sorry xx”.

Miss Dawes replied: “No, I’m sick of you hitting me.”

Earlier, John Jones KC, defending Wellings, told the assemblage immoderate the difficulties successful their narration they were not the crushed wherefore Miss Dawes chose to termination herself, a determination made due to the fact that of “multiple factors”.

He said: “That narration had been loving, affectionate and different good, but astatine times some hard and stormy.

“It is not portion of my defence to rise immoderate adverse remark oregon disapproval against anyone.

“Nothing I accidental is intended to adversely trespass connected the representation of a young pistillate who seemingly was astir universally loved and regarded with affection.”

Mr Jones continued: “Kiena Dawes was a precise troubled young lady. The grounds volition uncover she had a long, troubled psychiatric past and had made several, immoderate mightiness say, determined attempts astatine termination successful the past.”