'Every mum's worst nightmare' as beloved son dies while waiting for rehab placement

Stuart died at his friend's flat in Walker Street in Preston
-Credit: (Image: Google)


An addict who was desperately trying to overcome his demons died while waiting for a placement in rehab, an inquest heard.

Stuart Hall's family had known that he was struggling with his alcohol addiction but had no idea he was also taking illegal drugs. Friends said that the 40-year-old would take up to 10 pregabalin tablets a day and also used crack cocaine and heroin.

Friend Michael Westwood, who was a neighbour of Stuart's parents, said he had first noticed his drinking when he was 14. "I was concerned and I didn't want him to end up like me," Michael later said in a statement.

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"Stuart had never used drugs until a few years ago. I moved to Avenham and during that time heroin and crack was rife. We would dabble with drugs but in the last few years we became aware we were doing too much so we cut down but then our drinking got worse."

In the early hours of Tuesday May 7 this year Stuart had gone to Michael's flat in Walker Street. Michael noticed that after Stuart had taken two lines of heroin he appeared to be unconscious.

"I slammed the ash tray on the coffee table to try and wake him but I knew he was dead," Michael said. "I was devastated by what has happened, Stuart was like a brother to me. I've never seen anyone react to heroin like this before and it has really frightened me."

Toxicology tests revealed that the level of heroin in Stuart's system were within the range encountered in fatalities. At an inquest held today, (Monday September 23) at Preston Coroner's Court, extracts were read out from a statement by Stuart's mum Moira.

In it she said: "He had a long-term issue with alcohol but there was no suspicion of any drug use. He said he was going into rehab to address his alcohol problem."

The inquest heard that Stuart, who was born in Preston, would drink up to five litres of Frosty Jack's cider a day. At the time of his death he was awaiting a placement at an in-patient rehabilitation clinic.

Returning a conclusion of a drug-related death, Area Coroner Kate Bisset addressed Stuart's mum as she described what happened to him as "every mother's worst nightmare".

"He really did try but on this particular day that heroin was too much for his system, potentially because he hadn't been using it as much," the coroner added.

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