Inquest into death of Maria Stubbings

An inquest into the death of Maria Stubbings concluded that a catalogue of incompetence and inadequacies by Essex police did contribute to her death.

A long list of failings by the force was read out by the Coroner which included failing to perform basic policing duties and ineffective management of her case.

Maria, from Chelmsford, was murdered by her ex-partner Marc Chivers in 2008.

The Chief Constable, Stephen Kavanagh admitted that his force had failed to protect Maria's right to life but said more money had now been invested into dealing with domestic abuse.

The family of Maria Stubbings who was killed by her former partner in Chelmsford have been reacting to her inquest which found she was failed by Essex Police.

Maria who was 50, was murdered by her ex Marc Chivers back in 2008 in Chelmsford. He'd previously served 15 years in prison in Germany for killing another ex-girlfriend.

The inquest found that her killing was contributed to by a catalogue of failings by Essex Police. Outside her son Benji, her brother Manuel Fernandez and her daughter Celia Peachey gave this reaction:

The Chief Constable of Essex Police has admitted his force failed to protect a woman who was murdered in her home by her ex-partner.

A long list of failings at the hands of the police were read out as the Inquest into the death of Maria Stubbings from Chelmsford came to an end.

Maria who was 50, was murdered by her ex Marc Chivers back in 2008. He'd previously served 15 years in prison in Germany for killing another ex-girlfriend.

Today the Coroner criticised Essex Police, labelling the force's treatment of the case as Inadequate and incompetent and that it contributed to Maria's death.

The inquest found that Maria’s killing was contributed to by a catalogue of failings by Essex Police. These include:

• Failure to undertake a risk assessment and safety plan in October 2008, when Chivers was released from prison
• · Incompetence of Domestic Abuse and Hate Crime Unit (DAHCU), in particular Domestic Abuse Liaison Officers (DALOs)
• · Incompetence of supervisors
• · Inadequate training
• · Ineffective IT systems and lack of communication between intelligence systems
• · Ineffective case management and inability to link incidents
• · Failure of frontline officers to perform basic policing duties, including failure to arrest perpetrator on numerous occasions
• · Significant policy breaches including downgrading Maria’s allegation of burglary without supervisors’ approval and failure to notify other agencies