The case of a woman who claimed she was a battered wife after shooting her husband as he slept will re-open in the Court of Appeal on Monday.

Josephine Smith was jailed for life nine years ago for murdering her husband Brian at their home in Watlington near King's Lynn in Norfolk.

Smith - now 40-years-old - claimed during the trial she had suffered years of violence and sexual degradation.

Her case has been referred to the appeal judges by the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

Sex acts

Smith shot her husband with a gun taken from her parents' house a week earlier.

During her trial at Norwich Crown Court, the mother-of-three claimed her husband had been violent to her over a number of years, forcing her to watch pornographic videos and enact degrading sex acts.

Smith also said her husband beat her and she hid bruises beneath make-up and polo-neck sweaters.

The prosecution refused to accept Smith's plea of guilty to manslaughter on grounds of provocation or diminished responsibility.

Women's groups criticised the verdict.