Mother who stabbed her husband to death and blamed her daughter jailed for life

Lisa Ellwood, 40, was handed a minimum 16-year prison term after she plunged a kitchen knife into Ryan Ellwood's heart during a blazing row at their family home. Leeds Crown Court heard how the killing unfolded after the pair had spent the evening celebrating her birthday at a pub, where she had drunk six cocktails.

Ellwood later told a 999 phone operator that she had simply found him after coming home - and suggested her 16-year-old daughter may have been responsible.

Paramedics who attended the address in Wakefield were unable to save Ryan, 42, and he was pronounced dead at 11.45pm on August 29 last year.

The court heard their marriage was marred by violence, which was often instigated by both of them, but the jury unanimously convicted Ellwood of Ryan's murder.

At her sentencing, Recorder of Leeds Guy Kearl KC said the "main driver" behind the bloody killing was her drunkenness and she bore full responsibility.

He said: "Ryan Ellwood may have been no angel himself, there's compelling evidence he was violent towards you on occasion. However, I'm satisfied that it was usually you who escalated matters and resorted to physical violence. You cannot bring yourself to accept that it was you who killed Ryan Ellwood. This senseless act of violence cost Ryan Ellwood his life."

A statement read out on behalf of Ryan's family said they were left "utterly devastated" by his death. His sister Lucie McInnes wrote that the family knew the pair were not in a "happy or healthy" marriage, but they "had no idea it would end up in Ryan's murder".

The trial previously heard how the pair had gone out drinking in the Blind Pig pub in Wakefield city centre on August 29 last year. During the course of the evening, Ellwood had been served six cocktails containing strong alcohol that included vodka, gin and tequila.

However, the pair began to argue while at the pub, and Ellwood was later seen on CCTV falling over near her home as she arrived alone after Ryan. When she got back, the argument resumed in the kitchen, and she then picked up a knife and attacked him, inflicting a fatal stab wound to his chest. Ryan died after the blade pierced his lung, rib and the aorta area of his heart.

Over the course of her two-week trial, where Ellwood denied murder, she had portrayed herself as a 'battered wife' who had been regularly assaulted by Ryan. She said Ryan would often get drunk and then attack her while she slept.

Ellwood, who moved to Wakefield from Ireland in 2019 to live with Ryan, had told the court: "It would be a regular thing with Ryan. I would be woken either by being choked or punched for no reason. He would never remember beating me. It's difficult to go through something like that, waking up with cuts and bruises and your husband saying, 'I don't remember doing that'."

She also described how their marriage as being "non-existent" towards the end of their relationship, telling the court that Ryan cheated on her.

In one incident she followed him to The Strafford Arms pub in Wakefield city centre and "caught him" with another woman. And in November 2022, she said they had been out at Reflex, a nightclub in Wakefield, and when she returned from the toilet, Ryan was with another woman.

She said she left without saying anything, but Ryan noticed and followed her. Once outside, she said he grabbed her by the hair and punched her, causing her to fall and strike her head on the pavement, knocking her unconscious. An ambulance was called and Ryan was arrested, she said.

Prior to his death, Louise said she was "walking on egg shells" and adding: "I was always terrified, I just never knew what was going to set it off."

Ellwood said she had become a "functioning alcoholic" due to anxiety and depression.

She said she would buy cans of mixed alcoholic drinks daily before work and put them in a Costa coffee cup to disguise them. But despite that, she said she continued to love Ryan.

She had told the court: "No matter how bad my life would be with him, it would be worse without him." The jury also heard how Ryan was frequently assaulted by Louise during drunken rows, which had left him as a "shell of a man".

Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Phil Hughes, of the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said: “This was a drunken argument that has sadly taken an extremely violent turn and resulted in the loss of Ryan’s life. The jury has seen through Lisa’s attempts to mislead the investigation and she has now been sentenced for this senseless crime.

“Ryan’s death has had a devastating effect on both families, and I hope the conclusion of this court case helps them as they continue to move forward with their lives following this tragic incident.

“During the trial, the court heard from friends and associates of events where Ryan’s suffered both physical and emotional harm because of his wife’s jealousy and accusations of infidelity. This case places an important spotlight on male domestic abuse.”