Wife Who Physically, Mentally Abused Husband For Two Decades Gets Four-Year Prison Sentence

A 45-year-old woman in England has been handed a four-year prison sentence and given an indefinite restraining order for physically and mentally abusing her husband for years.

Sheree Spencer, of Market Weighton in East Yorkshire, admitted to coercive and controlling behavior between January 2016 and June 2021 as well as three offenses of assaulting her husband, causing actual bodily harm, between January and April 2020, Hull Live reported.

Spencer, a former employee of the U.K. Ministry of Justice, left her husband living in fear and feeling trapped in their marriage for 20 years with her persistent "nasty" attacks, which included slapping, kicking, punching, hitting, biting, spitting at and hurling insults at her husband, the Hull Crown Court was told.

Spencer left her husband, who was not identified in the report, with a "cauliflower" ear and a chipped elbow during one attack with a wine bottle, according to the outlet.

Spencer was reportedly a heavy drinker and consumed up to three bottles of wine a day at times, the court heard.

Prosecutor Michele Stuart-Lofthouse revealed that the couple had been together since 2000, had three young children and lived in Bubwith, near Selby. Spencer's violent behavior toward her husband came to light after the police were alerted of the situation.

In one incident, Spencer spat at her husband and grabbed him by the throat, causing him breathing difficulties.

Spencer's behavior got worse when the family moved to London. Aside from pushing and slapping her husband aggressively, she allegedly also hit him in the back of the head with a wine glass, resulting in an injury that required stitching.

She also damaged his personal property, including laptops, phones, clothes and household items. At one point, she damaged a tire on his car using a kitchen knife and lunged at him with the knife, causing a cut below his knee.

Her husband backed all these up by handing over 43 photographs of injuries, 36 video clips and nine mobile phone recordings to authorities. "You're not a f---ing man. I want you out of my life," she was heard saying in one recording.

The man said to the court that he had suffered 20 years of physical and mental abuse and feared he would never fully recover from the ordeal.

"I have had to seek help from my [general practitioner] on several occasions," the husband stated.

The husband said Spencer controlled all aspects of his daily life, including which room he could sleep in and which toilet he could use.

"She threatened to make false allegations to me to the police," he said.

According to defense attorney Richard Pratt, alcohol played a huge role in the "shocking, distressing" case.

A mixture of alcohol and her prescription medication caused Spencer to behave in a way that "appalled" her, and she accepted that she had caused pain and humiliation to her husband, Pratt stated.