Woman in 'abusive relationship' jailed for stabbing partner to death

A woman has been jailed for more than six years for stabbing her partner to death after living in an "abusive relationship", police said.

Sophie Butler, 20, from Bromley Court in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, was in a "volatile relationship" for two years with Norasab Hussain.

The couple went out on May 30 last year and had an argument about Miss Butler speaking to another man, Staffordshire Police said.

Officers said the couple left the town centre in a taxi and travelled to her flat where the dispute continued, with 33-year-old Mr Hussain phoning Miss Butler's mother and a friend and calling her unfaithful.

She grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed him through the chest, fatally penetrating his heart.

Butler was jailed for six years and three months at Leicester Crown Court after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

Detective Chief Inspector David Giles said: "Their relationship was volatile and the court heard how domestic abuse was a toxic feature which undoubtedly contributed to an unhealthy relationship and ultimately this untimely death.

"Miss Butler presented evidence to the court in which she described how living in an abusive relationship had had a corrosive effect on her mental health.

"This tragic incident has ended the life of a young man and condemned a young woman to prison as well as devastating two families by its lasting effects.

"My thoughts are with the family of Mr Hussain and I hope this verdict will assist them in coming to terms with what has happened."