Lisa Swain has officially reported Dylan Wilson to the police following the strangulation of daughter Betsy Swain in Coronation Street.
During tonight’s episode (Thursday, July 16), Lisa made it clear she was determined to make Dylan answer for what happened to Betsy, despite her daughter’s desperate pleas not to involve the police.
So, what could Dylan now be facing after strangling Betsy during sex? Legal experts have explained the potential consequences for the teenager.
Lisa reports Dylan in Coronation Street
In Weatherfield tonight, Betsy was left trying to come to terms with her devastating diagnosis after suffering two strokes.
Doctors explained that she now had aphasia and dysphagia. This meant she would struggle with speech, reading and writing. She’d also experience weakness down the right-hand side of her body.
However, they reassured her that, with physiotherapy and time, she should make a full recovery.
Unable to process everything her daughter was going through at such a young age, Lisa headed home. She hoped for a chance to rest. Instead, she found herself confronting Dylan in public, accusing him of assaulting Betsy during sex.
Sean had been completely unaware of what had happened. But, he quickly told Dylan that strangling Betsy had been dangerous. This wasn’t something that ‘everyone did,’ despite Dylan believing otherwise.
Back at the hospital, Lisa told Carla she intended to report Dylan to the police. She insisted that what happened to Betsy was not an act of love. Betsy overheard the conversation and begged her mum not to go through with it.
Lisa refused to back down though, heading straight to the police station to report the incident.
Legal experts explain what Dylan Wilson could face
Dylan could now find himself in serious trouble. Although he insisted the pressure he applied to Betsy’s neck wasn’t hard and believed the strangulation had been consensual, the injuries were severe enough to cause multiple strokes, meaning he could potentially face a prison sentence.
Danielle Reece-Greenhalgh, partner at the criminal litigation firm, Corker Binning, told Coronation Street Insider: “This is an extremely topical storyline for Coronation Street to be targeting. The offence under section 75A of the Serious Crime Act 2015 criminalises the intentional strangulation (pressure/compression round the neck or throat) or suffocation (restricting airflow by other means) of another person.
“Although questions of consent frequently arise in cases involving risky sexual activity, as in the case of Dylan and Betsy, the law consistently draws a line where actual bodily harm or more serious injury is inflicted. Even though both parties believed the pressure to be minimal, its intentional application combined with that act’s ability to impede breathing and the significant harm caused would be sufficient to fall foul of this offence.”
Dylan could still be prosecuted over Betsy strangulation
Criminal defence lawyer Marcus Johnstone, Managing Director of PCD Solicitors, also told Coronation Street Insider: “What the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 does is remove or limit a lot of the legal flexibility around injury and consent – if a person consents to choking but is injured, then the person who did it can still be prosecuted.”
While strangulation during sex is a crime, he explained that prosecutions can be more difficult if no medical treatment is required.
“Unless a person is injured enough to seek medical attention, or was strangled without their consent, then it is naturally very difficult for many of these cases to be detected, investigated and prosecuted.”
However, because Betsy suffered multiple strokes following the strangulation, Dylan could still face prosecution as the storyline continues.
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Coronation Street usually airs Monday-Friday at 8.30pm on ITV.
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