Inquest into the February 2023 killing of Emma Pattison and her daughter Lettie finds that their murderer had lied about his medical history when applying for his firearms licence
Murder victims: Emma Pattison and daughter Lettie were shot multiple times by George Pattison
A coroner has called on Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to introduce tighter restrictions on gun licensing following the deaths of Emma Pattison, the former head teacher of Croydon High School, and her seven-year-old daughter Lettie in a shooting at Epsom College in February last year.
At the inquest at Woking Coroners’ Court last month, senior coroner Richard Travers found Emma Pattison, 45, and Lettie were unlawfully killed, while husband and father George Pattison had committed suicide.
Coroner Travers said he had identified a “matter of concern” in the gun licensing system, which meant applicants could evade scrutiny of their medical history, after hearing that chartered accountant George Pattison, 39, had been supplied anti-anxiety medication by an online GP.
The family were found dead at their home in the grounds of the private boarding school in Surrey in the early hours of February 5 last year.
Emma Pattison was the first woman head teacher at Epsom College, a post she had taken up in 2022 after six years as head at Croydon High School in Selsdon.
At the time of the shooting, Croydon High issued a statement which confirmed that Lettie was a pupil at their junior school. Emma Pattison, they said, was “hugely respected and much loved Head of Croydon High”.
They said: “She was a warm energetic compassionate leader, dedicated teacher and generous, insightful colleague and friend.”
Today, in his Prevention of Future Deaths report, Coroner Travers called for government action to prevent the issuing of firearms licences without full declarations of gun owners’ medical histories.
The inquest found that while George Pattison was legally allowed a shotgun under a firearms licence, he had lied about his medical history in renewing his application.
In his report, Coroner Travers said, “A risk of other deaths will continue to exist” unless gun ownership laws are tightened.
The inquest had heard that between 2019 and 2021, George Pattison used an online service to prescribe him “significant amounts” of the drug propranolol to help him with symptoms of anxiety. This was without the knowledge of his GP.
He was then able to lie to the police about his mental health condition during safeguarding checks on his gun licence renewal application in 2022.
When he was asked if he had been diagnosed or treated for medical conditions, which included “Depression or anxiety”, he responded “No”. Although his GP’s details were included in the form, they had no knowledge of George Pattison’s use of online medical services.
Raising concerns: Surrey coroner Richard Travers
Coroner Travers also raised concerns that controlling and coercive behaviour should be considered in gun licensing after a direct plea from Emma Pattison’s family during the hearing.
George Pattison first gained a firearms licence in 2012, which was renewed in 2016 and 2022.
Surrey Police was notified of a domestic violence incident in 2016, where it was alleged that Emma Pattison had assaulted her husband. The issue was investigated and, according to the PFD report, the shotgun certificate was temporarily removed, but later returned.
Coroner Travers highlighted it appeared there was no consideration by Surrey Police “whether this might have been an example of coercive controlling behaviour on the part of Mr Pattison”.
But, he added, there was evidence of later domestic abuse or coercive controlling behaviour. This evidence did not seem to be brought to the attention of the Licensing Officer when Pattison applied to renew his licence.
Under current guidance, a GP has to confirm to the police whether an applicant has any relevant medical conditions, including mental health conditions.
The Coroner’s Prevention of Future Deaths report has been sent to the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, the health secretary, Wes Streeting, and the chief constable of Surrey police, Tim De Meyer.
He has also sent it to the National Police Chiefs’ Council and British Medical Association. The authorities have a duty to respond to Prevention of Future Deaths reports within 56 days.
At the inquest, it was given in evidence that 11 cartridges had been discharged from a double-barrelled shotgun, nine of which caused injuries, including three to Emma Pattison, five to Lettie and one to George Pattison.
The court was told that on February 4 last year, the Pattisons had been watching rugby with friends and their children, the last of whom left around 7pm, before ordering a £50 Chinese takeaway.
Deborah Kirk, Emma Pattison’s sister, told Surrey Coroner’s Court that her sister rang her that evening at 11pm and said, “I need someone to come over.”
She said that her sister’s tone of voice was one of “concern, but not of terror”.
“She didn’t sound frightened for her life and wasn’t screaming for someone to help. It was more like she had assessed the situation and did not feel safe,” Kirk told the court.
It was the “same tenor as when George had smashed the television” on a previous occasion.
Kirk also said that her sister told her that George Pattison had hit her and their dog, Bella.
Kirk and her husband, Mark Miller, got an Uber to her sister’s home just after 11pm. But by the time they arrived, Emma and Lettie were already dead.
The court heard police would have no knowledge of the medication George Pattison was prescribed online unless he had declared it.
It may or not have been a bar to re-issue but “certainly would’ve been taken into consideration”, the inquest was told.
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