A woman was found dead in her hallway covered in blood after failing to turn up at her son's home.
Gillian Dobie from Ormskirk was found at the Fountains retirement home in Green Lane on, January 21, the day after she had been due to arrive at her son's home to stay with him. Her son contacted the care home after concerns grew when the 67-year-old did not show up.
The warden used a master key to gain access to Ms Dobie's flat and discovered her body on the floor. She was found in the hallway with a significant amount of blood from a head injury she suffered after falling and banging her head while drunk.
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An inquest at Preston Coroner's Court heard yesterday that the flat had been locked from the inside and police found no evidence of third-party involvement or suspicious circumstances. A post-mortem CT scan revealed she had an intracranial haemorrhage where bleeding occurs inside the brain or between the brain and skull.
Detective Inspector Paul Mulrooney, the senior investigating officer from Lancashire Constabulary, said in a statement that Miss Dobie's lifestyle also led him to conclude her death was the result of an accident. He had been told she had a history of alcohol abuse and there had been several other falls at her flat.
A post-mortem toxicology test revealed Miss Dobie's blood ethanol level was 257 milligrams of alcohol per litre of blood. Area Coroner Richard Taylor explained, for context, that this was more than three times the drink-drive limit and returned a conclusion of accidental death.
He said: "She had had a lot to drink but that doesn't alter the fact that there is no evidence to suggest this wasn't anything other than an accident. Gillian Dobie was found dead at her home on January 21 from an injury sustained following an unwitnessed fall."
