Woman killed herself after being harassed by neighbours on street
A woman took her life after allegedly being tormented by her neighbours for two years as police took ‘no action’.
After an inquest into the death of Amanda Dunn aged 56, a coroner wrote to Staffordshire Police with concerns that officers are not taking harassment cases seriously enough.
Ms Dunn had a history of anxiety and depression and took a fatal dose of prescribed medication on March 21.
Coroner Andrew Haigh said she had received ‘a lot of aggravation’ from people living on her street in Penkridge, a village between Wolverhampton and Stafford.
He said the neighbourly problems had been ‘a major reason’ for her suicide and filed a ‘prevention of future deaths report’ after hearing from her relatives that police had not taken any action to stop the abuse.
Mr Haigh also said there was a ‘real concern police are seeking to brush such incidents under the carpet and are not taking them sufficiently seriously’.
He wrote on Friday: ‘During the course of the inquest the evidence revealed a matter giving rise to concern. In my opinion, there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken.
‘Family members told me that for a period of about two years prior to her death Amanda had received a lot of aggravation from a set of neighbours.
‘Police were contacted several times but took no action. The evidence I heard clearly seemed to amount to harassment.
‘Prior to the inquest I was not aware of the full extent of the concerns and had not requested evidence from the police on this.
‘I realise therefore that I have only heard one side of the story but there is a real concern that police are seeking to brush such incidents under the carpet and not taking them sufficiently seriously.
‘Clearly, I do not want another death reported to me of a similar nature.’
Staffordshire Police has until September 24 to respond to the coroner’s concerns.
The force has been contacted for comment.
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