Inquest into the death of Rhianan Rudd concludes

Yesterday, the Chief Coroner, Her Honour Judge Alexia Durran handed down her conclusions in the inquest into the death of Rhianan Rudd.

Rhianan was a looked after child at the time of her death, having initially been remanded to local authority care in April 2021 by the Magistrates Court when she was charged with offences under the Terrorism Act 2000. Those proceedings were ultimately discontinued in December 2021. Rhianan died at a children’s home, aged 16, in May 2022.

The inquest hearing lasted over 3 weeks in Chesterfield and was heard by the Chief Coroner sitting alone. After hearing substantive legal argument, the Chief Coroner concluded that Article 2 was not engaged. Any missed opportunities were not systemic and/or there was no causal link between those missed opportunities and Rhianan’s death.

Whilst recognising the impact of the prosecution on Rhianan, the Chief Coroner concluded that it was necessary and appropriate to investigate and prosecute Rhianan for the offences. While vulnerability is a relevant factor, the Chief Coroner concluded that a difficult balance must be struck between that vulnerability and protecting the public.

The Chief Coroner concluded that Rhianan’s death was the result of a self-inflicted act but it was not possible to ascertain her intention.

In so far as there were missed opportunities, the Chief Coroner concluded that those were not systemic and/or changes had been introduced. Accordingly, the Chief Coroner did not consider it necessary to make a Prevention of Future Deaths report.

The inquest has received significant media attention, including: the BBC, Guardian, Daily Mail and The Times.

Claire Palmer was sole counsel for Counter Terrorism Policing East Midlands and the Chief Constable of Derbyshire Police in the inquest.