A judge on Wednesday dismissed the jury in the trial of former Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs after it failed to reach a verdict on charges that he attacked and controlled his ex-partner. The jury members failed to agree verdicts on any of the three counts he faced during the four-week domestic violence case at Manchester Crown Court. Giggs, 48, who ended his career at Old Trafford as the most-decorated player in English football history, was at the court for the outcome. A retrial is possible but prosecution lawyers will have to consider if it is in the public interest. Giggs had denied using controlling and coercive behaviour against Kate Greville, 38, between August 2017 and November 2020, assaulting her, causing actual bodily harm and the common assault of her younger sister, Emma Greville, 26. Summing up the trial, Judge Hilary Manley had asked the jury of seven women and five men to consider if the couple's relationship “veered off the rails” due to Ms Greville’s inability to accept Giggs’s <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2022/08/16/ryan-giggs-tells-jury-he-has-never-been-faithful-but-never-assaulted-a-partner-either/">serial womanising</a>, with her wreaking “her revenge by twisting and exaggerating their routine arguments”. Or, she asked, was the relationship “much more sinister and darker”, involving a man exerting his power over an emotionally vulnerable woman, eventually leading to a loss of self-control? The jury had been considering their deliberations for 22 hours and 59 minutes before they were brought back into court at 3.04pm UK time. Judge Manley asked if they had reached a verdict on any counts on which a majority of 10 to one had agreed. The foreman of the jury answered: “No.” Asked if there was any “realistic prospect” of them reaching verdicts if given more time, the foreman again answered: “No.” Judge Manley then thanked the jurors and discharged them. She warned all the jurors not to discuss the case as there may be another trial in the future. Giggs was released on bail until a mention hearing on Wednesday, September 7. He gave no reaction during the short hearing. Now retired from playing and a former manager of the Wales national side, Giggs exploded on to the football scene as a teenager in the mid-1990s. As a player, he made a club-record 963 appearances over 23 years for Manchester United, winning 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.
