A much-loved dad live-streamed his suicide on Facebook, an inquest heard. Paul David Hilton, 34, was found hanged at his home in Bolton in April this year.
Shortly before ending his own life he started a 'Facebook Live' broadcast and positioned his mobile phone camera in a way that meant it captured what was happening. An inquest into his death heard a 'number of friends and acquaintances' were watching the stream as the tragic events unfolded.
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A friend alerted the emergency services as soon as he realised what was happening. Paramedics arrived at Mr Hilton's home, on Tennis Street in the Halliwell area of the town, within six minutes of the call, made shortly after 7am on April 30.
The stream continued to be viewed as paramedics forced entry to his home. However, Mr Hilton was deemed to be 'beyond resuscitation' and was declared dead at the scene.
A coroner ruled Mr Hilton, who had a history of mental health issues as well as drug and alcohol abuse, had taken his own life and had done so intentionally, as he recorded a conclusion of suicide.
And he said it was an 'unusual', 'surreal' and 'alarming' feature of the case that Mr Hilton had 'set up and orchestrated the scene to make sure his final moments were live streamed.'
The inquest heard Mr Hilton had a history of 'episodic mental ill health including anxiety, low mood and depression, first being prescribed anti-depressants in 2012'. He also had a diagnosis of paranoia which was linked to his use of illegal drugs, in particular cocaine, and alcohol dependency.
He had had a history of a number of previous 'impulsive drug overdoses' as well as 'self-harming behaviour and suicidal ideation' the inquest heard.
The coroner said it was clear at times he was 'crying out for help' and that 'in the circumstances, the family want to know if more could have been done to help him.'
In the summer of 2021, he was referred to the community-based addiction team Achieve, but was discharged in July due to what the coroner said was his 'unwillingness and inability to engage with them'. In January last year, he was admitted to hospital after reportedly self-harming but was discharged the following day and referred back for treatment and monitoring in the community.
Three weeks before his death he also had a telephone consultation with Jaclyn Pickup, a mental health nurse based at his GP surgery. However, she said despite disclosing he had self-harmed several weeks earlier, he had agreed to re-start his medication after not taking it for around a week, and had 'clearly indicated he didn't feel suicidal.'
Mr Hilton's mother Carol said his mood was 'up and down' for around a year before his death. "There have just been so many times. We felt like, ‘what is it going to take to get him that help'?" she said.
Senior Coroner Timothy Brennand said that despite it being a 'concern' that those involved in Mr Hilton's care never 'took a step back' or took a 'holistic view' of potential treatment options, he had concluded all the clinicians involved 'did what they genuinely and honestly believed was in Paul's best interests' and that he had concluded it was 'not a preventable death from a clinical point of view.'
The two-day inquest heard evidence from two of Mr Hilton's friends who watched the live stream on the morning of April 30.
One, Lewis Morrison, said after waking early and receiving a notification that Mr Hilton had' gone live' on Facebook, he assumed it 'would be something amusing' as 'Paul was funny' Police Coroner's Officer Juliann Hyde, who interviewed Mr Morrison, told Bolton Coroner's Court.
However, she said when he 'realised what he was going to do he began to panic' and woke his girlfriend telling her to dial 999.
So distressed was he had was unable to give the ambulance service Mr Hilton's full address and had to 'guide them in' Ms Hyde said. He also alerted Mr Hilton's former partner who raced to his home and spoke to the paramedics outside.
After being called at 7.04am, the first ambulance crew arrived by 7.10. However it took them several minutes to break into the property, which was locked, and they didn't reach Mr Hilton until a few seconds before 7.14am the inquest heard. He was declared dead at 7.18am without CPR being attempted.
One of those watching the stream had said there seemed to be 'no sense of urgency' from the medics whilst Mr Hilton's family said they believed there was a 'delay' in cutting him down and that CPR should have been attempted.
However Senior Paramedic Luke O'Byrne said when paramedics arrived there was evidence of hypostasis and they deemed him to be 'beyond resuscitation' – a 'perfectly proper' decision the coroner said he ultimately agreed with.
Mr O'Byrne said one of his colleagues had turned off Mr Hilton's phone camera when they realised it was broadcasting for the 'dignity of the patient and what we were about to do.' As a result of being stopped the video was never saved onto Mr Hilton's profile.
A handwritten note was found in his home whilst he also posted a comment along with the live stream, both of which were interpreted as an 'expression of his intent' the inquest heard.
A police investigation concluded there were no suspicious circumstances or third-party involvement. A post-mortem conducted by Dr Patrick Waugh concluded Mr Hilton's cause of death was hanging.
Giving evidence toxicologist Dr Julie Evans said samples showed he had a blood alcohol level around two and half times the legal drink-drive limit.
She also said cocaine was discovered with the level indicating 'high dose recreational use.' However, she said it was 'not the level you would expect in toxicity.'
Mr Brennand said it was clear he had recently taken 'significant' amounts of both and that may have had an effect on his mood and mindset, in particular, the 'come down' effects of cocaine.
However, he said he was a regular user with a likely 'tolerance' to both and did not believe they had 'deprived him of his cognitive functioning ability or his free will.'
He said: "On the balance of probabilities, the degree of preparation, the fact he could move, the fact he could type and write, and the fact he had the wherewithal to engage the scene in the way which has been described to me, persuades me the only appropriate conclusion is one of suicide, and I so record that."
"One of the most alarming and distressing features of this case is that he decided he would live stream events from his home and this was picked up by a small number of his friends" he added.
"There was a degree of preparation that demonstrates he was setting up and orchestrating the scene, to make sure his final moments were live-streamed. That is the unusual, and if not unusual then the surreal reality of the evidence in this case."
Speaking about her son after the inquest, mum Carol said: "Paul's passing has left our family devastated. He was my first born son and big brother to Anthony, Paula and Emma.
"A loving father to four beautiful children. He was adored by so many people. Not just family, he had many, many friends, some of them over 30 years from primary school.
"Then Paul lost his nan in 2011 and this is when his mental health battles began as they had such a close bond he took her passing very hard. As we are (taking) his now.
"We love him so much and will miss him eternally."
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