The Court of Appeal has reserved its judgment on prosecutors' application to retry a woman whose murder conviction was overturned after she fatally stabbed her abusive partner. Julie Ann McIlwaine admitted to the killing of James Joseph Crossley but has contested the murder charge, arguing instead that she acted under a temporary loss of control as a victim of domestic abuse. According to BBC News, the court heard arguments from both the prosecution and the defence on the question of whether a retrial should proceed, with judges indicating they would deliver their decision at a future date.
McIlwaine was originally convicted of murder in October 2024, but the Court of Appeal quashed that conviction on 2 October 2026, finding the jury had been misdirected on her loss-of-control defence. The appellate court determined that uncontradicted expert evidence had been highly material to the case and that jurors had reached a verdict which went against the weight of that evidence. McIlwaine, a mother of four, has remained in custody at Hydebank Wood throughout the proceedings, appearing before the court via video link during today's hearing.
Eilis McDermott KC, representing McIlwaine, argued that should a retrial occur, the verdict should be substituted with one of manslaughter rather than murder. The barrister also made submissions that McIlwaine should be released on bail pending any retrial, characterising her as someone with no prior criminal record who had been a model prisoner during her two years in custody. The Crown prosecution service opposed the bail application, while the court reserved judgment on all outstanding matters.
What led to the original conviction?
Crossley, aged 38, was stabbed repeatedly—up to 10 times in the chest and abdomen—as he slept at McIlwaine's home in Dunmurry on the night of 2022 in March. At the time of his death, Crossley was on bail for an alleged assault against McIlwaine and was subject to a restraining order that prohibited any contact with her. Despite this period of separation, the couple had re-established their relationship by the evening of the killing, and the sentencing judge noted that they had a child together who was nine months old at the time of the killing.
McIlwaine's defence centred on her claim that she had been subjected to serious and prolonged domestic abuse by Crossley, including coercive control and violent behaviour. When she was sentenced following her conviction, the judge acknowledged that the court had been satisfied she had endured such conduct, and observed that such treatment could
drive people to actions which they would not otherwise countenance. The sentencing judgment records that McIlwaine's defence relied on a lengthy 999 call, body-worn police footage and her police interviews as evidence of her state of mind and the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Why was the conviction overturned?
The appellate court found that jurors had been given incorrect guidance on the loss of control defence, a legal provision that allows a defendant to argue they acted under a sudden and temporary loss of control rather than with premeditation or intent to kill. The judges determined that the jury's verdict was inconsistent with the expert evidence presented during the trial, which had supported McIlwaine's account of her psychological state at the time. This misdirection was deemed sufficiently serious to warrant overturning the conviction and raising the prospect of a retrial.
What happens next?
Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan told the court that the matters under consideration were
important matters in a significant caseand that the judges would return a decision at a later date. The court must now determine whether to order a retrial on the murder charge, whether to allow bail pending any such retrial, and potentially whether to substitute the murder conviction with a manslaughter verdict. The outcome will have significant implications for McIlwaine, who is currently serving a minimum 12-year jail term, and will clarify the legal principles governing loss of control defences in domestic abuse cases.
