F. Hughes: The First Woman to Successfully use "Battered Woman Syndrome" as a Legal Defense

Francine Hughes was the first woman to successfully use the “battered woman’s syndrome” as a legal defense after setting fire to the bed where her husband slept. Francine was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Francine wed Mickey and endured 13 horrific years with him. The marriage resulted in the birth of four children whom Mary adored with all of her heart. Mickey verbally and physically abused Francine almost from the beginning of their relationship.

Eventually, Francine cut ties with Mickey and divorced the man. She moved on with life with the kids.

Mickey Cons His Way Back Into Francine's Life

Months later, Mickey suffered severe injuries in a car accident and begged Francine to help. Feeling sorry for the man, she agreed to let him move back into the home.

After recovering from his injuries, Mickey began abusing Francine again. The verbal and physical assaults occurred almost every day. She stayed with Mickey this time because she feared for her life and the lives of her kids. Mickey threatened to kill them if she ever left, a threat she felt he would make good on at the drop of a dime.

Police Won't Help

On March 9, 1977, she had enough.

After coming home from secretarial school to an intoxicated and angry Mickey, Francine attempted to ignore his obnoxious behavior so she could prepare food for the kids.

He screamed at and belittled Francine, made threats and otherwise did what he could to get under her skin. Mickey even refused to allow Francine to prepare dinner for the kids.

Mickey then assaulted Francine. She called the police, asking them to arrest him. They refused to make an arrest since they did not witness Mickey attack Francine. As an officer stood in the home, he overheard Mickey say “It’s all over for her'' because she called the police. Nonetheless, the officers walked out the door, leaving Francine defenseless against the man.

Francine attempted to make dinner for the kids a second time after police left. Mickey swept the food off the stove, then forced her to pick it up with her hands. Once she cleaned up the mess, he turned over the trash content, spilling its contents. He then forced Francine to clean up the mess with her hands.

Mickey ordered Francine to prepare his dinner. He ate the meal then forced his wife to have sexual intercourse with him. After raping Francine, Mickey fell into a deep, intoxicated slumber.

Enough is Enough

Francine was tired of the abuse, tired of living in fear, tired of Mickey’s harsh and hateful ways. As she stood inside their home, a thought entered her mind.

“I was thinking about all the things that had happened to me…all the times he had hurt me…how he had hurt the kids,” Francine told People. “I stood still for a moment, hesitating, and a voice urged me on. It whispered, ‘Do it! Do it! Do it!’”

Francine Starts a Fire

She told the three kids to grab their coats and go sit in the car. Once the kids were out of the house and safely inside the car, Francine doused gasoline around the bed where Mickey slept. She then lit the bed ablaze and walked outside.

Francine stood outside the home for several minutes watching it burn before getting inside the car with the kids and driving herself to the police station where she confessed to setting her ex-husband on fire. Police took her into custody.

Mickey Dead in Fire; Home Destroyed

Firefighters rushed to the home but it was too late. Mickey was dead and the home was destroyed by the fire. The Medical Examiner determined his cause of death was “smoke inhalation.”

Case Aftermath

Francine was found not guilty of murder by reason of temporary insanity.

In 1980, Francine married country musician Robert Wilson and earned a nursing degree. She died on March 22, 2017, from complications of pneumonia, at the age of 69.