Coroner's Comment About Death Of Woman

Chronicle (Levin), 20 September 1949, Page 6

Coroner's Comment About Death Of Woman

HAMILTON, Sept. 19. That deceased died at Te Awamutu on July 21, that the eause of death was post-partem haemorrhage following on abortion, and that such abortion probably was induced by a third person, was the verdict returned by Mr. S. _L. Paterson, S.M., Coroner, when the inquest into the death of Ngaere Leslie Hobinson, also known as Ngaire Olive .Jenkins, aged 32, coneluded today. The Coroner added the following riders:— That the evidenee relating to the eause of the abortion was not available at the inquest on account of the action of Dr. Clough Blundell in removing vital organs from the body without the authority of the relatives of deceased and without a coroner's order.

That if the abortion was not induced by a third person, tnat a contnbutory eause of the death of -leeeased was the neglect of Dr. Blundell to ensure that proper treatment vvas given deceased m aecordance with recognised medicai practice. Tnat a copy of the depositions be iorwarded to the New Zealand Medicai Council. '•The cireumstances as to the eause of the death of the woman were such as to eause the/ Minister of Health, upon the application of the police, to issue an exhumation order," said Mr. Paterson. "This inquest is a consequenco ^.of the exhumation. Mrs. Jenlcin§, ,on } the evidenee of her husband and her iriend, Mrs. Blackett, visited Dr. Blundell with the express intention of having an illegal operation performed. Withxn 12 hours of leaving home she was dead and in a little over 24 hours

she was buried. -She left home apparentiy in good health. Dr. Blundell s records contained no reference to "her having visited him yet he had issucd a death certificate and the eause of death was the eause likely to ensue j from an illegal operation. In addition | to tliese cireumstances, suspicious in themsclves," added Mr. Paterson, "it appeared that deceased had been taken to the home of Mrs. Taylor some ten miles out from Te Awamutu and it was there that this haemorrhage which caused death, had taken place and th«t subsequentlv Dr. Blundell had, without authority, performed a partial postmorlem examinaticn of the body and removed certain organs, the condition of which would afford vital evidenee as to whether the eause of the haemorrhage had been due to the performance of an illegal operation. These organs, after removal, had been destroyed so that they were no longer available for evidenee. All these cireumstances called for an inquiry."