**Former Bridgend MP Katie Wallis Pleads Guilty to Harassment Charge Against Ex-Wife**
Cardiff, 17 June 2025 — A once-prominent Conservative politician, Katie Wallis, has admitted to harassing her ex-wife, Rebecca Lovell, in a case that has drawn both public and media scrutiny. Wallis, who previously served as the MP for Bridgend under the name Jamie Wallis from 2019 to 2024, entered a guilty plea at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court following an agreement reached just before her trial was set to begin.
Wallis, who made history as the UK’s first openly transgender MP after coming out in 2022, admitted to sending four unsolicited phone messages and one voice note to Ms Lovell between mid-February and late March 2025. The charge that Wallis had driven past her ex-wife’s home was dropped as part of the plea arrangement. The court heard that her contact persisted even after her arrest and release on bail earlier in the investigation.
During the hearing, Wallis’s barrister, Narita Bahra KC, highlighted her client’s fragile mental health condition and submitted a request for the proceedings to be adjourned to allow for a psychiatric assessment. Bahra described Wallis’s behaviour at the time of her police interview as “bizarre”, focusing for much of the time on eating crisps and disengaging with officers, suggesting a “psychotic breakdown”. Nonetheless, District Judge Rhys Williams declined the adjournment request, noting the court had already previously accommodated such a delay.
The court was also asked by the prosecution to exclude journalists from proceedings on the grounds that media coverage might adversely impact the victim’s professional life as a teacher. Judge Williams rejected this application, upholding the importance of open justice and citing a lack of evidentiary support for the request.
Wallis, who now resides in Cardiff, appeared in court in a blouse and cardigan, notably carrying a designer handbag. The magistrates heard that her recent struggles had coincided with her gender transition and included two reported suicide attempts as well as involuntary psychiatric hospitalisations. Her legal team argued this context was important for understanding the distress and mental health difficulties she faced during the period in question.
It emerged during the case that Wallis and Lovell had been together for over 15 years before divorcing last year. Prosecutors said the harassment began after Ms Lovell informed Wallis of entering a new relationship. Emily Jermin, for the prosecution, told the court that Wallis’s communications became persistent and unwelcome, continuing despite police intervention.
In her defence, Bahra KC insisted there had been no intention to harass, alleging that not all communication between the former couple had been provided to the authorities and that Lovell had opposed Wallis’s full-time transition. The barrister further revealed Wallis regarded her ex-wife as her “only emotional support” during a period of enormous personal upheaval and vulnerability.
The court adjourned sentencing until 14 July in order to allow for the preparation of a psychiatric report considering the role of gender dysphoria and other significant mental health challenges. Meanwhile, the case remains one of the most high-profile recent examples of the intersection between mental health, gender identity, and the criminal justice system.
This is not Wallis’s first encounter with the courts. In 2022, she was fined for failing to stop at the scene of a car accident, later citing post-traumatic stress disorder and distress over being approached while presenting as a woman as factors that contributed to her actions at the time.
As this legal saga unfolds, Wallis’s story continues to capture public interest, raising broader questions about the pressures faced by transgender individuals in the public eye and the support available for those in high-profile positions experiencing mental health crises.
For anyone affected by this story, confidential support can be accessed through the Samaritans helpline, available free 24/7 at 116 123.