Thornton woman's relief after bigamy charge is thrown out

A woman spoke of her 'absolute relief' after being cleared of bigamy.
Blackpool Magistrates CourtBlackpool Magistrates Court
Blackpool Magistrates Court

Thirty-two-year-old mother Jennifer Newby married paramedic Paul Edmondson in the Elvis chapel in Las Vegas in 2015.

But police accused her of already being married at the time - courtesy of a marriage in the Dominican Republic in 2008 to another man.

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Yesterday a judge sitting at Blackpool, magistrates court dismissed a charge of bigamy against MrsNewby of Aintree Road, Thornton.

District Judge Jane Goodwin said: “The Crown has offered no evidence that the marriage in Dominica was valid something the defendant raised in her original police interview. I therefore dismiss the case.”

The judge said the case against the woman did not meet the required burden of proof test in criminal proceedings and that the Crown had failed to produce evidence that the Domincan marriage was valid in England and Wales.

After the hearing Miss Newby said: “This is an absolute relief to me. It has been hanging over me for months.

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“Paul has died since we were together and his family haven’t spoken to me since these proceedings began.

“I honestly believed my first marriage was void and said that all along.”

She said she went through the ceremony in the Dominican Republic, which was organised for her and her then parnter by their holiday company. The marriage fell apart and divorce proceedings began in the UK.

However, the police investigation began when her former partner re-started divorce proceedings. The decree nisi had been granted and he acquired the decree absolute from a civil judge.

When that came through he put a message on Facebook stating: “ Hurrah I am divorced.”

That was seen by Paul Edmondson’s parents who claimed that the marriage to their son was bigamous.