Genealogy Chat

if someone died from a drug overdose in Hospital why would the inquest have been held 6 months later and would that mean the body was not released for burial till then thanks

I don't really have any personal experience of this, but maybe the initial autopsy would be done quite quickly but if the results of that needed to go to a court to be assessed by the Coroner, then sometimes things get behind and there is a long wait.......... If you think of cases in the newspaper today, if you read about an inquest it is often a long time (months+) after the death. I think the date of burial might well be after the autopsy and before the inquest, unless the police were involved....... Merry

thanks Merry , I have never had an inquest done on anyone so wasnt sure how it worked

Dont know, perhaps the police investigated this one? My GGF committed suicide in 1912 and the inquest was held a week later.

It is not unusual. Depends a lot on the date. I have worked as a coroners officer and have known inquests to be held well over a year after the death. 6 months is nothing strange. There are two types of inquests - a coroners appointment or a full inquest before a jury. It may well have been the case that there were a lot of enquiries to be held before the coroner was in a position to hold an inquest, or a witness may not have been available. Many reasons, but don't read anything strange into it. Ian

I forgot to add that it is unlikely that the body would not have been released prior to the inquest, unless there was some severe conflict in the evidence. Ian

Don't know if it's different with suicides for any reason but my dad's body was released 10 days after being found but the inquest was 8 months after he took his life.

thanks very much ,for your replies

Delay in inquest would probably be due to length of investigation. I also think that things take much longer now. Inquests in my family tree 1879 and 1908 were done less than a week after death. My Broadmoor relative's trial was 2 months after the crime he committed. Nowadays murder trials take years to get to court. Back in 1862 the trial was all over within a couple of hours! nell

Just found this on the internet 'Will the inquest delay the funeral? In most cases (other than murder), no. The Coroner will usually open the inquest very soon after the death, at which evidence of identification is given. The hearing will then be adjourned, and appropriate certificates will be issued enabling the funeral to be held. Where there has been a murder, there is usually a delay before the funeral can be held. This is to enable evidence to be gathered by both the prosecution and the defence.' - from www.tcf.org.uk/leaflets/leinquests.html

my my Helen what an exciting family you have to research, you do seem to find out a lot about your lot, I seem to stumble at every step.

thanks for that, the reason I asked is because it says he died from Cocaine intoxication agravated by restraint so wondered if he died because of rough treatment in the Hospital

What was the year of the inquest? Ian

hi Ian it was just a few years ago

My mother died last year of Mesolithenoma asbestos related cancer. As this is classed as an industrial disease I was told that an inquest was compUlsary. A post motem was also compelsory (sp.) After this was held the coroners clerk visited me at home and took a statement and a few days later I was issued with a coroners free interem death certificate which gave a probable cause of death and I was allowed to use this to arrange a cremation. The inquest took place a month or so later and was reported by the local paper. About the same time my uncle died after a fall in a nursing home. This was also subject to compulsory inquest but the home was given longer to consult a solicitor etc. I think the fall was accidental. I imagine if your relative death was partly due to the restraint tecnique used which could have been in hospital the staff would have been given time to prepare legal defence. An inquest must also be held if any one days at home without having seen a doctor in the last week. A bit of a grizly subject but I hope it helps. I am sure the local press would have reported yours. best wishes Anne

Just as a matter of interest, doctors are very wary and often reluctant to issue a death certificate nowadays. This is all thanks to Dr Shipman. So even if the deceased has seen the Dr within the last 21 days, they may well not issue a cert. In my role as coroners officer, I have known people in their 90's die in hospital and not be certified, necessitating an inquest or coroners appointment and a PM. Ian

Sounds like they were awaiting the results of toxicology reports, which can take forever. Not unusual for inquest to take place 6 months after death. Every avenue has to be explored before a full inquest can take place.

thanks for all responses to my query I am trying to access the news paper records now ,