A 56-YEAR-old Pope’s Hill woman’s fatal fall downstairs at her home was due to her alcoholism, a coroner ruled last week.

Police had initially treated Christine Powell’s death in Popes Hill in April as suspected murder and officers arrested a 54 year old man.

A Home Office pathologist, Dr Andrew Davison, was called in to assist in the investigation.

But the police soon decided there were no suspicious circumstances about the tragedy.

At the inquest held at Gloucester Coroners Court Dr Davison’s post mortem report stated she had suffered linear fractures across the skull. There had been at least two impacts. She also had a fractured rib. “Her body smelt of alcohol,” he said.

At last week’s inquest Gloucestershire coroner Katie Skerrett concluded that it was an ’alcohol related death.’

"The doctor concluded that the injuries were in keeping with a fall downstairs and there were no injuries suggesting an assault. Her blood had 225mgs of alcohol which is consistent with intoxication," said the coroner.

The court heard that Ms Powell had battled with alcohol for a number of years. On occasions she was unsteady on her feet and she had suffered alcohol withdrawal seizures.

The cause of death given by the pathologist was blunt trauma to the head and acute alcohol intoxication.