Five year investigation uncovers police mistakes, court comments about a lamp ‘myth’ and Caroline’s final words in note
Christine Flack has been investigating the circumstances around her daughter Caroline’s death for over five years.
The former host of Love Island took her own life at the age of 40 in February 2020 after learning that prosecutors were going to press ahead with an assault charge. In a new Disney+ documentary her mum, friends, agent and lawyer explain how she was let down and left feeling helpless. Also there is powerful new evidence mistakes were made by police and the Crown Prosecution Service.
Here are the new facts, details and important moments raised in the documentary which also dispel some previous media reports which contained errors….
The night of the incident
On the night of December 12, 2019, Caroline and boyfriend Lewis Burton had both been out, separately.
Mum Christine says in the doc: “They got back, and Carrie said, funnily enough, their cabs drew up at the same time, and they came in, and they’d both had a bit to drink. So she said we were laughing and joking. And they went up to bed, and she said Lewis fell asleep, but then his phone went. She picked the phone up, and there were texts from another woman.”
Caroline’s lawyer Paul Morris then takes up the story: “Caroline had found out that there were messages from a third party on the phone. She was upset. She was holding on to the phone. It was the confirmation of her worst fears, and she kept it in her hand, and with that, she’s trying to wake Lewis up.
“It’s a firm gesture, but the phone’s in the hand. He was frustrated that she’d accessed his telephone. She was upset at what she’d seen on the phone.” After noticing his head was bleeding Lewis threatened to call the police and then did call 999. Caroline was screaming “if you call the police I’m done” he allegedly argued back and called 999.
Caroline’s friend Mollie Grosberg said: “I don’t know if he really meant to do that(call 999) but it was a very charged situation, and they were absolutely wasted.”
Very sadly Caroline also told Mollie at that moment she felt her boyfriend was “gone” and her career could also be over and so she deliberately self harmed before the police arrived. This meant there was blood in the room and on their bed.
Police bodycam picks up what was REALLY said
Police came onto the scene and Lewis was initially confused about what Caroline hit him with and said a lamp and then a fan. When the policeman replied ‘what that fan?’ Lewis said: “I don’t know what it was.”
The only object taken by police as evidence was his phone, which now had a cracked corned, possibly caused during the row. Lewis later would confirm on social media that it was a phone used.
On the bodycam Caroline said: “It’s all me, I did it. I didn’t know my phone was going to hit him in the head.”
Lewis then tells police: “I love her. I don’t want this to be in the press. She’ll harm herself, I’m telling you.”
He did not require medical attention but Caroline did for her injuries. After being hospital overnight she then had to go to a police cell.
The Detective Inspector on duty that night overruled the CPS who initially suggested giving Caroline a caution. This was unusual.
Christine Flack explains: “I’ve managed to get my hands on the original decision from the Crown Prosecution Service, and it says ‘I do not believe that the case is in the public interest to prosecute as the injured party does not support the allegation. There is no domestic violence history between the parties. The suspect is 40 years old and has no previous convictions. The cut the injured person did not require medical intervention’. Therefore, they just wanted to carry a caution.”
Pleas to halt case fall on deaf ears
In late December after she was charged, Caroline was not coping well and her agent and legal team made the decision for her to see a psychiatrist.
Lawyer Paul Morris says: “It was evident that there should have been a greater mental health assessment and the impact that a prosecution would have on her mental health. For that reason, a psychiatrist was instructed in order to prepare a report and the decision was made to disclose that to the prosecution.”
But despite this new information coming to light, there was no change to proceedings, and not even a delay.
Caroline’s agent Louisa Booth said: “So we sent a psychiatric report to the CPS saying she is not fit and well mentally to go through this. We had professional analysis. And that was ignored.
“We were so taken aback actually, that they dismissed the report from the psychiatrist. You’re screaming into a void and no one is listening. So if that’s how we felt as management, how did she feel?”
On this decision mum Christine told the Mirror : “It was shocking. The whole thing has been shocking. They were going to pursue the case, whatever. They wouldn’t let anything change their minds.
“And that’s what Caroline knew in the end, there was no way out. She just couldn’t see one.
“Everybody was telling her it’d be all right. It was an accident.
“There were no charges brought against her by Lewis. She couldn’t have done anything more, people around her couldn’t have done anything more.
“But they were going to take it to trial. And I think they were saying about showing body cam of her being so distressed. She couldn’t take that and she just couldn’t see her way out in the end.”
Nightmare evening before first court appearance
After failing to stop the case continuing, Caroline then could have died the night before she was due in court as she felt her life spiralling out of control. The documentary reveals she took pills and drank the minibar dry, afraid of what would happen next.
The photos of her entering court that day were of a woman pushed to the edge and who had an hour’s sleep. And yet worse was to come.
Court comments at odds with what really happened
The prosecution lawyer in court, Katie Weiss, told the court Lewis had been hit with a lamp and that police said the scene was like “a horror movie”.
Caroline maintained throughout that she hit Lewis with a phone as it was still in her hand when she was using her hand to wake him. Lewis thought she used a fan or maybe a lamp but admitted he didn’t know. Later he confirmed it was a phone. Somehow this initial comment recorded on body cams was taken as fact and said in court which changed the entire narrative.
And rather than being a “significant” head injury with lots of blood at the scene as was inferred by Weiss, the blood at the scene was Caroline’s own. One of Christine’s main wishes from speaking to her in recent days is to dispel the “myth” of the lamp being used in the altercation by her daughter.
Heartbreaking unseen videos
Caroline opened up about the impact of her arrest in unseen footage she was planning to use for her own documentary. It showed the impact the charges were having on her.
In a video taken after her arrest, Flack said: “I’m doing this because I want to remember what I went through and what my family went through, what my boyfriend went through, what his family went through. It’s three days after I’ve been arrested for having a fight with my boyfriend. I’ve always co-operated with the police since they arrived. I was put in a cell.
“I was promised that I was anonymous and this wouldn’t be going further, and it was a really private situation.
“Five minutes after I left the station, they’ve gone to the press, all the details, everything. Since then, I lost my job, the job I’ve worked all my life on. I’m living in a hotel. I’m receiving so much abuse.”
Flack, who is also seen crying in the video and wearing a burberry scarf, added: “It was a fight. I’ve never hurt anyone in my life, the only person I ever hurt is myself.”
Final days
Caroline had some good days in February and moved home to avoid photographers and she also stopped drinking, walking her dog Ruby and hanging out with friend Mollie and her twin sister and mum.
But she was clinging to the idea the case would still be dropped. She found out it would definitely go ahead on Feb 13.
She messaged her friend: “They won’t drop the case. My life is over. The bodycam. My head is throbbing.”
She went into a meltdown, trashing her flat and friends including Mollie rushed there and had to call for an ambulance, but she eventually calmed down and managed to go to sleep. However she then urged friends to go home the next morning as her sister would be coming to the flat later on February 15.
But her sister Jody arrived at a locked door and the sounds of Caroline’s dog barking. Once inside she learned that Caroline had died.
In a final note Caroline left in her flat when she died, she wrote: “Please let this court case be dropped, and myself and Lewis find harmony.”
Former CPS Boss says ‘Charge makes no sense’
Former CPS chief crown prosecutor Nazir Afzal studies the police documents gathered by Christine and is in no doubt she should have only been given a caution for what happened.
He tells her: “Having looked at all your evidence I can’t understand why they rushed the judgement. This was a case where there is no previous history, no coercive behaviour. Mr Burton never wanted this case and was adamant. This was a one off occasion where she lost her temper and did what she did, which she accepts. For all of those reasons, the very worst thing that should have happened was a caution.”
He added: “I have prosecuted thousands of these cases, none of this makes sense. Almost immediately in the cold light of day, prosecutors would have formed a view this case is going nowhere and they should have stopped the case. They are required to stop the case where there is insufficient evidence. I can’t think of any reason to proceed, unless they were scared of what the media were going to say about them. It is not about losing face, this is about justice. My take on it is Caroline would still be with us if certain decisions weren’t taken in that month or two.”
Christine also speaks to Jess McDonald, a former police Detective Constable who was working in London at the time of the incident, including in a safeguarding unit which deals with domestic violence.
Jess says: “I’ve been through all the paperwork in Caroline’s case, and there’s just so much that shouts out to me as abnormal treatment and mishandling.”
She goes on to highlight an email sent by the detective inspector to challenge the decision to only caution Caroline, where the DI insists there is not a clear admission of guilt.
Jess adds: “Caroline admits guilt consistently. She never denies that she hit Lewis with the phone.”
* Both episodes of Caroline Flack: Search For The Truth premiere on Disney+ today.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. Refuge is the largest domestic abuse organisation in the UK and can be Contacted free 24/7 on 0808 2000 247.
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Source: Mirror
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