A woman has said she has struggled to adjust to everyday life after a horrific attack. After facing death as her ex-boyfriend choked her and attempted to suffocate her with a plastic bag, Ellie Moxham says she lives in “constant fear”.
Former police officer James Riley, 28, was sentenced on Friday. Found guilty of attempted murder, he was jailed for 16 years.
A judge has described his two-minute attempt on academic girlfriend’s, then 24-year-old Ellie, life as “brutal and determined”.
The ex-Lancashire Police officer launched the “jealous” and vicious attack on Ms Moxham on 10 November 2022, and left his ex-girlfriend with long-lasting brain damage thanks to oxygen deprivation, according to Manchester Crown Court.
As reported by MailOnline, Ms Moxham’s victim statement described Riley’s “coercive behaviour” and the “traumatic” attack as having a detrimental effect on her daily life. According to Ms Moxham, she now struggles with night terrors and anxiety, living in “constant fear of another attack”.
She said, in an emotional statement to Manchester Crown Court: “The task of putting into words how that terrible night has impacted my life seems impossible.
“I have had to seek medical help to deal with the anxiety and process what has happened as it has started to impact my daily life.
“Since the assault, I cannot focus on my work for long, I find I can’t remember things that previously I would have been able to recall easily, I get frequent headaches that can sometimes only be helped by taking 3 naps a day, and I get anxious.”
Continuing, she spoke on the impact that the assault had on her academic career, which includes an environmental studies PhD. Ms Moxham said she is forced to take days out of her work as a lecturer which is “’impacting me financially”.
She has had to request extension on her PhD “just so I stand any chance of finishing it without my funding running out”.
The attack has severely impacted her social life and relationships, as she says it “has made (her) question people’s intentions.”
She said in her statement, given from behind the screen: “I find it hard to trust due to the sense of betrayal, and I constantly find myself questioning why someone would want to get to know me as I’m unable to be loved and worthless.”
However, Ms Moxham has taken steps to escape the trauma and secure control of her own life. She is on the path to “getting her life back”, she said.
According to her statement, Ms Moxham is seeking therapy to “help (her) manage the anxiety and process the past relationship so I can move forwards in a healthy way,” and she is continuing with work at Lancaster University.
Her statement maintains that she does not “want to be defined by this hugely invasive” situation any longer.
Ending on a positive note, she said that she has had “so many moments of joy and happiness in the past year, despite everything hanging over (her)”.
“I have learnt so much about myself and I am much stronger for it. I hope today is real closure for me and a chance to try to properly put all this behind me,” she finished.
