Intended for healthcare professionals

Rapid response to:

Editorials

Medical experts and the criminal courts

BMJ 2003; 326 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.326.7384.294 (Published 08 February 2003) Cite this as: BMJ 2003;326:294

Rapid Response:

Who, where, when and how? A second bite at the cherry.

On of the problems faced by Lord Hutton was that he was not able to
examine witnesses on oath because of the way in which his enquiry was set
up. It remains open to the Oxford Coroner to resume his inquest touching
the
death of the late Dr Kelly. A coroner, unlike Lord Hutton, has the power
to
summon witnesses and to examine them on oath so as to establish who a
deceased person was and where, when how he came to his death.

At the very least those who have shared their doubts about how Dr
Kelly came
to his death with the readers of this journal should consider also sharing
their
doubts and the reasons for those doubts with the Oxford Coroner.

Competing interests:
A R W Forrest is an Assistant
Deputy Coroner who retains
belief in the efficacy of the
Inquest as a means of
establishing the means by
which a person came to their
death.

Competing interests: No competing interests

11 February 2004
Alexander R W Forrest
Professor of Forensic Toxicology, University of Sheffield
Medico-legal Centre, Watery Street, Sheffield S3 7ES