11/09/2025
“The thing about abusers is they thrive on fear and silence, and I am terrified, but I can’t be silent.”
Domestic abuse survivor Louise Jackson is speaking out as her abuser is released from prison two years early, with no protections being put in place for her and her four children.
Speaking to The Irish Sun on Sunday and LMFM, Louise described the upheaval she faces.
“Anything that is in place, I had to put in place. I had to go and get a barring order for him getting out. The first time I went to get that, I was told, ‘No, he needs to reoffend.’ That’s shocking.”
“I fought that, I appealed it, and I did get a barring order. But that’s bringing victims back into a very traumatising courtroom. I’ve been in courtrooms since 2019.”
“Who looks at the terror, the pain, the violence that I’ve been through, that my children have witnessed, and decides to release him two years early?”
Louise has also had to upgrade her home and car security herself.
“When someone is convicted of coercive control or domestic violence, there should be an automatic protocol in place to protect victims and their children.”
“I hate to think of more women having to go through this. The system that is supposed to protect women is bringing them to their knees – it has brought me to my knees.”
“I stood in that courtroom a few weeks ago, fighting for my children, and he hadn’t changed. He was undermining assaults on me to where the judge had to pull him up and say, ‘You do realise you pleaded guilty to that?’ There’s no remorse. I know who’s coming out. He accessed my new address through the barring order that I had to apply for. He knows my new address now. How does that make sense?”
Women’s Aid CEO Sarah Benson said: “Where crimes are part of a persistent pattern of abusive and controlling behaviour towards a current or former partner, the risk of recidivism can remain particularly high.”
"Domestic abuse-informed risk assessments should be undertaken pre-release, and the provision of long-term protective orders ought to be standard consideration at the point of sentencing.”
Louise ended her LMFM interview with a poem she wrote. Offering support to other survivors, the poem ends with the line: “All you have to do is pick up that phone and ring Women’s Aid today.”
Women’s Aid National Freephone Helpline is open 24 hours on 1800 341 900. You can chat to our support team at www.womensaid.ie