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open verdict
noun
a finding by a coroner's jury of death without stating the cause
Example Sentences
Coroner Caroline Beasley-Murray recorded an open verdict at an inquest into the deaths at Chelmsford Coroner's Court in 2014, adding: "Not all of the pieces of the jigsaw are there yet."
On 17 February 1977, a jury inquest in Haverfordwest returned verdicts of unlawful killing for Patti Thomas, and an open verdict on Griff.
Instructing the jury last month, the coroner told them there were five verdicts open - accidental death, death by misadventure, unlawful killing, an open verdict or a narrative verdict.
An open verdict means that the evidence does not fully or clearly explain the cause and circumstances of death.
An initial inquest had been held in 1973 and recorded an open verdict.
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