Death inquest: the outcome of every coroners' inquest hearing in Preston this week

Every week coroners’ courts carry out vital investigations into unexplained, violent or unnatural deaths. Inquests are carried out in public and are held in a coroners court, however, they are not courts of law and no-one is on trial.

A coroner will examine all deaths in their jurisdiction of unknown cause, violent or unnatural deaths and deaths that occur in custody.

Why are inquests held?

The purpose of the inquest is to find out who the deceased person was and how, when and where they died and to provide the details needed for their death to be registered. An inquest is not a trial and it is not the coroner’s job to deal with questions of civil or criminal liability. Possible conclusions include: natural causes, accident, suicide, unlawful or lawful killing, industrial disease, and open conclusions where there is insufficient evidence for any other conclusion. Narrative conclusions, which are a short statement of facts found proved, can also be made.

Inquests in Preston on the week of May 1

There have been five inquests held in the week of May 1 in Preston at the coroners court on Faraday Drive, Preston. Here is a brief summary of the coroner’s verdict for each inquest.

Tuesday, May 2

• Preston’s coroner heard evidence relating to the death of Terrence Willam McGarr from Lancaster. The 80-year-old died on December 15, 2002, at his home address. The inquest was told Mr McGarr had been struggling with his mental health prior to his death and had entered his bath fully clothed, where he died by drowning. However, the court heard it was not possible to deter what Mr McGarr intended when he got into the death or whether a medical event caused him to become submerged under the water.
• The coroner ruled Julie Dorothy Ruth Stewart died by suicide.

Wednesday, May 3

• Preston Coroners Court ruled that a 58-year-old man from Grimsargh, Paul Stead, died by suicide.

Thursday, May 4

• Preston’s coroner held a hearing into the death of John David Redfern, who died on March 16 this year at his home address. He had suffered traumatic injuries in a car accident in 1995 which caused tetraplegia, traumatic brain injury and epilepsy. The coroner heard how Mr Redfern’s health had deteriorated noticeably since 2022 and his epilepsy had worsened. He also developed pneumonia. His care was re-orientated to palliative care prior to his death.
• The coroner later heard evidence surrounding the death of Catherine Margaret Coward. The 93-year-old from Lancaster died at her home on May 8, 2022. The inquest heard medical professionals were aware of a bleed but that a rare complication of a gastro intestinal procedure was undertaken on 24th March 2022 at Lancaster Royal Infirmary which had led to a decline in her health.

Friday, May 5

• The coroners court ruled that 23-year-old Emily Jane Free, from Lancaster, died by suicide. The court also ruled that a 71-year-old Darwen man, Colin Grimshaw, died from an indistrial disease.
• A 62-year-old diabetic died after losing consciousness while taking a bath and drowning. Preston Coroners Court ruled that Carol McGurty, of Blackburn, died January 14 of this year at her home address. The court heard she had a longstanding diagnosis of diabetes which was treated with insulin but remained difficult to control. She suffered a hypoglycaemic incident whilst taking a bath. This caused her to lose consciousness and slip underwater where she drowned.
• A 79-year-old Bamber Bridge woman died from misadventure, the court has ruled. Margaret Ellen John-Baptise’s inquest was heard at Preston Coroners Court on Friday (May 5).
• The Preston coroner has ruled a man who died at Royal Preston Hospital on October 2022 is likely to have suffered a fatal burst abnormality. James Sutton was taken to hospital after collapsing at his home on October 20, 2002. Medics found he had suffered a large intracranial bleed. The court heard there were no treatment options available for Mr Sutton, who had significant underlying medical conditions. He deteriorated until his death on the following day. The coroner rules that it is more likely than not that the initial cause of Mr Sutton's collapse at home was a burst abnormality between the arteries and veins in his brain.