Background of the Case
Martha Giles, a mother of five, was employed as a nurse on a psychiatric ward at Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital. On 12 February 1959, the 45-year-old was discovered murdered within the hospital grounds.
One individual was charged in connection with the murder but was subsequently acquitted due to the evidence being circumstantial. Despite nearly seven decades passing, Martha's family remains without clarity on the circumstances surrounding her death or the motive behind it.
Documents related to the investigation have been sealed and are not scheduled to be opened until 2055.
Details of the Crime
"She was found brutally wounded. She had been stabbed and her clothes had been put back together again,"
explained Pauline Rowson, Martha's great niece and a crime writer, during an interview with the BBC.
"So the killer had opened her clothes, stabbed her, and put her clothes back together again. And her body had been moved, she wasn't killed where she was found.
There's just so many questions about this case. I've looked into it and I got so far then unfortunately hit a brick wall and couldn't get any further."
Sealed Case Files and Family Frustrations
The family's efforts to uncover the truth have been hindered by the sealing of case files for 75 years, with a recent extension adding another 20 years to the restriction.
Rowson stated she was informed the files were sealed to prevent unnecessary distress to those involved.
"I said well what kind of distress have you caused the relatives by sealing them?"
Political Calls for Transparency
Last month, Sir Gavin Williamson, MP for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge, urged the government to unseal the documents.
"The only things that would be sealed up for this length of time were state secrets, not something like this,"
he said.
"This is something you would be sealing up for this length of time if it was a nuclear programme, if it was to do with very sensitive intelligence, high levels of secrecy - not a criminal case.
This is why it's so illogical, what's the justification, is there something they're trying to hide?"
Theories and Speculations
Rowson has developed her own theories regarding the prolonged sealing of the files.
"They do not seal files for this long for a murder case,"
she said.
"I think that Martha was a whistleblower, I think she was about to blow the whistle on something happening there, or she was very uncomfortable with something happening [at the psychiatric unit].
You might say that's your crime fiction mind going on this, but having heard Sir Gavin, he's come to the same conclusion.
I think Martha knew what was going on, something was going on, and she didn't like it, and she was silenced as a result of it."
Family's Ongoing Impact
Rowson remains in contact with Martha Giles's daughter, Edwina, who is now 90 years old.
"She's come to accept she'll never find the truth in her lifetime and there's nothing more she can do about it,"
Rowson said.
"In crime fiction, which I write, you always get a result, justice is done, that's part of the structure.
But when I looked at this, justice has never been done and there's just a complete wall of silence."
Official Responses
Policing and crime minister Sarah Jones has stated that decisions regarding the opening or closing of National Archives records are under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police.
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