Vicki Fowler (Alice Haig) was left sobbing in EastEnders as Joel Marshall (Max Murray) grinned in court after the trial took an unexpected and dramatic turn.
Joel, as viewers know, is on trial for brutally attacking stepmum Vicki last year and filming her in the wake of the assault.
The teen’s misogynistic and toxic behaviour had left Vicki concerned in the weeks and months prior to the attack. When confronted over his twisted actions, Joel responded with violence.
Tommy Moon (Sonny Kendall), who had been harbouring Joel in the wake of the attack, ultimately turned him in to the police after realising what he’d done.
Joel has since been held in custody at a young offenders institute and, after pleading not guilty to the charges against him, he has been awaiting trial.
Vicki, meanwhile, has been worried about the trial, convinced that Joel will get away with his crimes.
The proceedings began in Wednesday’s (January 28) edition of the BBC One soap, with Tommy called as a witness to describe his relationship with Joel and why he reported him to the police.
Vicki waited outside with Zack (James Farrar) – who she secretly spent the night with – and Mark Fowler Jr (Stephen Aaron Sipple).
When it was her turn on the stand, Vicki recounted the devastating ordeal that she endured.
‘I thought I was going to die’, she said. ‘And then he got his phone out -What sort of kid gets their phone out? – and he filmed me lying there. He filmed me, beaten, unconscious.’
Joel’s defence barrister subsequently cross-examined Vicki.
In a bid to discredit her, he recalled how Vicki held Joel against the wall on one occasion before recounting the two incidents in which Vicki and Ross (Alex Walkinshaw) used money to cover up the twisted teen’s vile actions.
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Devastated over the turn that the proceedings had taken, Vicki burst into tears and – believing Joel’s freedom to be an inevitability at this point – she left the courtroom sobbing, telling Ross and Zack that she cannot go back in.
Joel smirked in sinister scenes.
The question is: will he get away with his sickening crimes? Or will justice prevail?
EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One or stream from 6am on BBC iPlayer.
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