A grieving mother is facing prosecution unless she deletes an official review which exposed police failings in an investigation into her daughter's death.
Caroline Charters has been told by Gloucestershire Police to destroy a 74-page Victim's Right to Review document detailing serious investigative failures in her daughter Danielle's case.
The force has threatened legal action under the Data Protection Act if she refuses to comply with their demands.
Danielle Charters-Christie was found dead inside a caravan she shared with her partner in Gloucestershire on February 26, 2021.
The 25-year-old's death was declared a suicide within just 55 minutes of police arriving at the scene.
Her partner had previously been accused of domestic abuse.
Caroline Charters has been told by Gloucestershire Police to destroy a 74-page Victim's Right to Review document
CHANNEL 4
The Victim's Right to Review document, handed directly to Caroline Charters in June 2024, was listed as "not protectively marked" - the lowest level of designated protection for sensitive information.
The review revealed that police failed to forensically examine the porch where Danielle's body was found.
The caravan was later "disposed of" before her partner's arrest on suspicion of murder around 13 months after her death.
In a decision described as "wholly inappropriate" by her family, police granted a request from the alleged perpetrator's father - a local undertaker - to personally move Danielle's body to a morgue.
FURY AT BRITAIN'S POLICE - READ MORE:
In a decision described as 'wholly inappropriate' by her family, police granted a request from the alleged perpetrator's father to personally move Danielle's body to a morgue
PA
In February, Caroline was visited by two Gloucestershire Police officers demanding she delete the review, citing a "serious data breach".
But she has refused to comply, accusing the force of "trying to silence her for exposing their failings".
"This document is really important for me because it proves how the police did not adequately investigate my daughter's death," she told Channel 4.
"My daughter deserves justice. I want accountability. My other living children deserve to know the truth."
Gloucestershire Police claim they have a "legal duty to protect those whose information we inadvertently released".
The force has sent Charters a six-page "outcome letter" to replace the detailed 74-page review.
MORE FROM THE SOUTH WEST:
In a statement, police said: "We are sorry for our oversight which we recognise has caused additional upset to Danielle's family."
The breach is now being formally investigated by the Information Commissioner's Office - a statement from which reads: "Gloucestershire Police have made us aware of an incident and we are making enquiries."
Charters has had to warn her children's schools and her employer that she could face police action - but remains steadfast in her refusal to delete the document.
"Danielle was such a bright, intelligent young woman who fought for everything that she believed was right - that's why I'm doing what I'm doing now," she said.
Her former partner was released without charge after being questioned on suspicion of murder in April 2022, with police citing insufficient evidence.
