Rape victim and campaigner
Born: January 14 1965;
Died: January 5 2017
JILL Saward, who has died aged 51, was a vicar's daughter who became a campaigner against sexual violence after being raped at her father's vicarage in Ealing in west London. She became the first rape victim to waive her right to anonymity to speak about a sexual assault after being attacked at her home in 1986, while her father and boyfriend were tied up.
The brutal attack, which came to be known as the Ealing Vicarage Rape, received widespread attention after judge Mr Justice Leonard said the trauma suffered by her "had not been so great".
Ms Saward, who was aged 21 at the time of the attack, went on to write about her ordeal in her memoir Rape: My Story, and campaign on issues including sexual violence and violence against women.
Born in Liverpool in 1965, Ms Saward once wrote she had no issues with being "tagged" as a rape victim, adding: "I make no complaint about this tag as it has enabled me to challenge politicians and work for change."
Her work over the last three decades saw her advise police and the judiciary on how best to deal with sexual assault and rape cases, as well as make numerous media appearances campaigning for the rights of victims of sex attacks.
Ms Saward co-founded Jurors Understanding Rape Is Essential Standard (Juries) to campaign for mandatory briefings about myths and stereotypes about sexual violence in trials.
Martin McCall, who was 22 at the time, was jailed for five years for raping Ms Saward and five years for aggravated burglary. Christopher Byrne, who was 22 at the time, was sentenced to three years for rape and five years for aggravated burglary and assault.
The gang leader Robert Horscroft, then 34, who played no part in the rape, was sentenced to 14 years for burglary and for assaulting Ms Saward's father. In 1998, Ms Saward said she had been able to forgive Horscroft after meeting him face to face. "Sometimes I thought it might be quite nice to be full of hatred and revenge," she said. "But you're the one who gets damaged in the end. So, although it makes you vulnerable, forgiving is actually a release."
In the years after her ordeal, Ms Saward wrote for newspapers and appeared on television and radio to call for improvements to the way rape victims are treated by the police and courts. She also campaigned successfully for a change in the rules so accused rapists were no longer able to cross-examine victims while representing themselves in court.
In 2008, she stood as a candidate in the Haltemprice and Howden by-election against David Davis who she accused of saying nothing at all about sexual violence while he was Shadow Home Secretary.
In a statement, her family said: "Jill dedicated the past 30 years of her life to helping other people. It gives us great comfort to know that our wonderful wife, mother and sister was able to help other people to the very end."
Alison Boydell, the co-founder of the organisation, described Ms Saward as an indefatigable advocate for the victims of sexual violence. "She also championed many other campaigns and causes and supported so many through her work, kindness and compassion," said Ms Boydell. "I will do everything in my power to ensure that her work on Juries was not in vain and that victim-survivors get justice."
Ms Saward died in hospital after suffering a stroke earlier this week and is survived by Gavin Drake, her journalist husband of 23 years, and three sons.
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