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Mother 'unlawfully killed' her five year-old son when she leapt with him from rocks at Haytor

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A mum unlawfully killed her five-year-old son when she jumped with him off Haytor on Dartmoor, an inquest has ruled. Katherine Hooper, 25, took her own life and that of her son Joshua when she leapt from the rocks on July 12 last year. Katherine's other son, Samuel, was later found dead at the family's home address in Duke's Close Paignton. An inquest into the triple death today heard that tourists had seen Katherine on the rocks at Haytor with her son on her back moments before she jumped. A Dutch tourist even took a photo of the picturesque scene which included the pair close to the edge. Torbay and South Devon coroner Ian Arrow recorded that Katherine died a self-inflicted death while Joshua Patterson was unlawfully killed. The coroner could not be certain how Samuel Patterson died although there were indications he may have drowned. Mr Arrow said it was likely the two-year-old was already dead when Katherine and Joshua left their house on the way to Haytor. He recorded an open verdict into Samuel's death. "It is an intensely sad situation you've had to bear," he told the family. After the inquest, held at the Palace Hotel in Torquay, Neil Patterson, criticised social services for what he said was a lack of care for Katherine, his partner, and their two sons.

Mother 'unlawfully killed' her five year-old son when she leapt with him from rocks at Haytor


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