A “jealous and violent” man told his estranged wife to swallow her
wedding ring before allegedly beating her to death in a “brutal” attack,
a court has heard.
Shaun Dyson, 28, is accused of the murder of Lucy-Anne Rushton, 30, in
the early hours of June 23 by repeatedly jumping or stamping on her at
their home in Andover, Hampshire.
Simon Jones, prosecuting, told Winchester Crown Court that the pair had
married in 2010 having eloped to Gretna Green but Ms Rushton became the
victim of a “history of domestic violence”.
Mr Jones said: “The defendant’s and Lucy’s relationship is probably best described as toxic.
“Lucy was killed by the defendant; she was the victim of a prolonged and
very severe beating, culminating in repeated stamping or jumping or
both on her chest and while she was laid on her back.”
He continued: “There was no justification for blow after blow, kick
after kick, stamp after stamp on Lucy. This was borne out of a jealous
rage in a violent man.”
Mr Jones said that Dyson, who had already hit Ms Rushton on the evening
before she died, had become “enraged” by a phone call she received from a
man she had been in a relationship with.
He said that a witness had seen the defendant say to Ms Rushton in the
early hours: “Swallow the ring because we are not together any more.”
He added that the witness said Ms Rushton had put the ring in her mouth
but had not swallowed it because they had seen it on the stairs later,
where it was found.
Mr Jones said Ms Rushton had told members of her family in the months before she died that she feared Dyson would murder her.
The prosecutor added: “She was convinced that he was going to do something to her and if he couldn’t have her, no-one could.”
Mr Jones said that, in February, Ms Rushton had also raised concerns
about the defendant and that he “had a bag ready with a change of
clothes and weapons”.
He said Ms Rushton’s mother had also witnessed attacks by Dyson, including over Facetime.
Mr Jones continued: “The fact that Lucy had concerns for her life
shortly before she was killed is a significant indication of the state
of the relationship and the concern Lucy had of the defendant, who could
turn to violence on the most extreme scale with the most extreme
consequences.”
He added: “It’s not disputed the defendant killed Lucy. We say what
happened that night was not a momentary loss of control but the
culmination of previous episodes of violence that had preceded that
night.”
The jury was shown CCTV footage of the defendant striking and spitting
at Ms Rushton in a hotel corridor in Bournemouth in September 2018.
Dyson, of Andover, Hampshire, denies murder and the trial continues.
