Killer's contact with police 'may' require inquest
Family handoutA police force's contact with a psychotic killer minutes before she stabbed a disabled woman to death in her own home "may be relevant" to whether an inquest is held, a coroner has said.
Patricia Hewitt, 42, had been freed by magistrates and allowed to walk away by police officers minutes before she killed Angela Lloyd, 56, in Newton Aycliffe in August 2025.
Hewitt was given an indefinite hospital detention order after admitting diminished responsibility manslaughter.
Angela Lloyd's family told County Durham coroner Jeremy Chipperfield they wanted her inquest to resume as police actions "led" to the killing. He adjourned making a decision to get more information from the courts.
On 13 August 2025, Hewitt was given a suspended sentence by magistrates in Newton Aycliffe for randomly assaulting a woman in Chester-le-Street the day before, her sentencing hearing at Teesside Crown Court previously heard.
Several people contacted the police about her erratic behaviour around Newton Aycliffe in the hours after she walked free from court, which included trying to get into a man's garden, walking around semi-naked, muttering and stealing wine from a shop.
Two Durham police and community support officers (PCSOs) spoke to her shortly before 18:30 BST and offered her a lift home, which she declined.
Family handoutHewitt, from Stanley, then walked away when a nearby shop worker confronted her about stealing two bottles of wine that day, the Crown Court had heard.
Minutes later she forced her way into the home of her victim, who had multiple health issues including a muscle wasting condition, and repeatedly stabbed her with a knife and scissors while demanding money.
At a short hearing in Crook, Chipperfield said his investigation into the death had been suspended while the criminal case proceeded through the courts.
As the case had concluded, he said he now had to consider whether or not to resume the inquest, but the "presumption in law" was he would not unless there were "sufficient reasons" for doing so.
He said the court case might well have answered all the questions he could ask about how Angela Lloyd died and he would only hold the inquest if there were still relevant issues which had "not been properly dealt with".
To ascertain that, he would need to get all the Crown Court documents to determine what "findings of fact" had been made, he said, which the inquest heard could take up to two months.
Angela Lloyd's brother Patrick told the hearing the family wanted the inquest to resume and were being supported by Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor MP Alan Strickland.
Patrick Lloyd raised the issue of the PCSOs speaking to Hewitt, adding "they just let her walk away and that led to Angela getting [killed]".
In response, Chipperfield said "those issues may well be relevant" and were the "kind of things we want to hear about".
He adjourned the case until 6 October to gather the court documents and representations from interested parties, including the police and Angela Lloyd's family.
Durham Police previously said it would "reflect" on the case to see if any lessons could be learned.
