Epsom head died of ‘shock and haemorrhage’ after being shot
THE head teacher of Epsom College died from “shock and haemorrhage” after being shot in the chest and abdomen while her daughter died from a “shotgun wound to the head”, an inquest heard.
Emma Pattison, 45, and her sevenyear-old daughter Ellette “Lettie” Pattison were identified through dental records, the inquest at Surrey coroner’s court was told.
Mrs Pattison and Lettie were discovered dead alongside George Pattison in the early hours of Feb 5 at their family home in the grounds of Epsom College, Surrey.
At the opening of the inquest into Mr Pattison’s death earlier this week, the court heard that the 39-year-old died from a “shotgun wound to the head”.
It is believed Mr Pattison, a chartered accountant, killed his wife and child before taking his own life.
Minutes before the triple shooting, Mrs Pattison made a distressed call to her younger sister, Deborah Kirk. Her family rushed to the house to find Mrs Pattison’s body and that of her husband and child.
Emergency services found Mr Pattison’s legally owned shotgun at the scene.
At the opening of the inquest, Simon Wickens, the coroner, said: “I would like to offer my sincerest condolences to Emma’s family and friends and also the wider community she served and the students she no doubt touched.”
He also offered his “sincerest condolences” to Lettie’s family and “to all those who have been touched by her life”.
The post-mortem examination carried out by Dr Ashley Fegan-earl, a consultant forensic pathologist, gave Mrs Pattison’s cause of death as “a shock and haemorrhage” as a result of “shotgun wounds to the chest and abdomen”.
Her daughter’s cause of death was given as “shotgun wound to the head”.
Mr Wickens told the court: “The reason for the inquest is the unnatural nature of the death.”
He also confirmed that both Emma and Lettie’s bodies have been released for a family funeral.
A pre-inquest review hearing into the three deaths has been set for June 27.