It’s been revealed that the coroner originally in change of the first verdict was not properly qualified for the role, and that in October last year Suzanne Greenaway, who made an official verdict of ‘death by misadventure’, quit her job just a month later as she did not meet the guidelines of practice for a fully qualified coroner.
Greenaway, an Australian nurse, whose verdict was that the singer died from the “unintended consequence” of imbibing too much alcohol, was a solicitor in the Law Society for 2 and a half years, whereas she should have been part of the organisation for at least 5 years. She should also have spent 5 years as a “qualified medical practitioner”, according to medical law.
Greenaway was appointed to the role by her husband Dr Andrew Scott Reid who is coroner for Inner London. “In November it became apparent I’d made an error in the appointment process. While I am confident that all of the inquests handled were done so correctly, I apologise if this matter causes distress,” he told The Sun newspaper.
This technical hitch has complicated matters and has raised questions about the thirty inquests she resided over. It has been reported that this will only be the case if her history is challenged in the High Court.
The singer’s posthumous release ‘Lioness: Hidden Treasures’ which went on sale in December to raise money for The Amy Winehouse Foundation and went straight to number 1 in the album charts, as well as debuting at number 5 in the US billboard chart.
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