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The Coronor  Coronial Duties  Autopsies and Inquests

THE CORONER:

In September 1194, in the Articles of Eyre, it was stated that ‘in every county of the King’s Realm should be elected three Knights and one Clerk to keep the pleas of the Crown’ These became known as ‘Crowners’ from which we get the word ‘Coroner.’

The original duty of the Crowner was that of an independent, unpaid revenue collector for the Crown whose most important task was the investigation of sudden death. This was because sudden death was an important source of revenue for the Crown.

When a body was discovered, the ‘hue & cry’ was raised to alert the Coroner who convened a jury. If the deceased could not be proven to be a Saxon, he was assumed to be Norman and a tax was imposed on the community. This tax was called ‘MURDRUM’ and its imposition was designed to protect Normans from Saxon revenge. It is, of course, the source of our word for ‘murder.’

Another important part of the job was record-keeping for the Crown and Crowners also commonly acted as a local judge. Interestingly, another significant duty at the time included trial by ordeal ( in which suspects were invited to prove their innocence by, for instance, picking up a red-hot bar).

The Statute of Westminster (1275) was the first (and some would say the last) enactment defining the Coroner’s duties but gradually over the centuries many of the Coroner’s duties were surrendered to other legal offices (as they developed) until investigation of sudden death was the only significant one remaining

CORONIAL DUTIES:

At the present the Coroner is charged with the

He or she must have been qualified as a solicitor, barrister or medical practitioner for at least 5 years (and in practice many more); it is now rare to find a Coroner who does not have a legal qualification. They are appointed by the Local Authority and approved by Secretary of State. They can only be removed by order of the Lord Chancellor, they are paid by the Local Authority and this is where their budget comes from. A Coroner is required to appoint a DEPUTY and may appoint an ASSISTANT DEPUTY

Interestingly during the correct discharge of his or her duty a Coroner cannot be sued for libel.

Following the recent Enquiry into the Coronial Service, significant changes are expected in the way that deaths are certified and in the way that the Coronial Service operates. These will include

These changes are expected in 2007 at the earliest.

AUTOPSIES AND INQUESTS:

Each year approximately 190,000 deaths are reported to the Coroner, usually by the doctor in whose care the person died, often also by the police. This represents about 34% of all deaths. Of these two thirds have a post mortem; in the other cases a ‘Pink A’ certificate is issue – this is a document that informs the Registrar of Deaths that the Coroner is aware of the death and is satisfied that there are no grounds for further investigation. Of those who underwent autopsy, approx four fifths had a subsequent death certificate issued immediately, while one fifth were followed by an Inquest

The purpose of the inquest is determined by Rule 36 of the Coroner’s Rules (Matters to be ascertained). In brief these are

‘How’ has two distinct meanings

Rule 42 of the Coroner’s Rules states that ‘No verdict shall be framed in such a way as to appear to determine criminal or civil liability of any named person.’ In other words, it is an investigation into the death and not a forum where responsibility for the death is the primary purpose.

Evidence is given on oath and failure to attend may result in a fine; repeated failure to attend may theoretically result in imprisonment. Failure to answer when called to give evidence may also result in a fine

There are various circumstances in which an Inquest must be held before a Jury

As in a normal trial, a verdict is given and may be one of the following

Natural Causes
(requiring a standard of proof no greater than a balance of probabilities)
Suicide
(which must be proven ‘beyond reasonable doubt’)
Accidental Death
(requiring a standard of proof no greater than a balance of probabilities)
Misadventure
(when the death resulted from the deceased’s own actions, and which requires a standard of proof no greater than a balance of probabilities)
Open Verdict
(when the evidence does not fully disclose the means whereby death arose)
Industrial Disease
 
Stillbirth
 
Lawful killing
(which is the result of an action, justified in law)
Unlawful Killing
(which must be proven 'beyond reasonable doubt.'  This verdict does not imply guilt of any particular party but clearly must interpreted in conjunction with parallel police investigations)
Neglect
(which requires a gross failure to provide the very basics of life - including medicine - on a non-transient basis and which requires a standard of proof no greater than a balance of probabilities)

 

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