Introduction

Beachy Head is a dramatic and beautiful chalk headland on the south coast of England. It is located 3 miles west of Eastbourne, and its summit extends 535 feet above sea level.

The imposing cliff tops offer tourists clear views for miles around, but are famous for another more disturbing reason – they provide an irresistible draw for those intent on committing suicide.

Death at Beachy Head

Eastbourne Parish Register contains entries of deaths at Beachy Head dating back to 1600 and by the middle of the 20^th Century there were an average of 6-7 deaths p.a. At the tail-end of the 1990’s it had crept up to an average of 17 p.a.

Between the years 1965-1989, an in-depth study of deaths at Beachy Head was made by Dr. John Surtees (1997 pp. 125-136) – a cumulative total of 250. His research looked into the causes of death, injuries sustained, factors relating to the circumstances of the deaths and the resultant verdicts.

Fig 1. below illustrates total deaths at  Beachy Head between 1965 and 1989, indicating the verdicts passed. It can be seen that the proportion of suicide and open verdicts fluctuates throughout, and can be attributed to some extent to inter-Coroner variation.

Fig 1.  Deaths at Beachy Head 1965-1989 (with Inquest Verdicts)

On January 9^th 2000, Paula Ramsden, a 32 year old mother of 2 fell from Beachy Head during a night-time stroll with her husband. He had recently increased her life insurance from £104,000 to £225,000. He was also having an affair.

At the recent inquest into her death, the Coroner, Alan Graze passed an ‘open’ verdict. He thought that there was insufficient information available on which to pass a verdict of ‘unlawful killing’, but felt that there were doubts about Mr. Ramsden’s version of accounts to point away from her death being an accident. (Smith 2002 p.3)

Suicide, accident or murder?

The case of Paula Ramsden illustrates the difficulties faced when attempting to piece together the reasons behind a death at Beachy Head.

The investigation must focus on evidence available at the scene (e.g. empty tablet bottles or suicide notes, or loose areas of the cliff edge that may have given way accidentally), evidence of injury to the body (either consistent or inconsistent with a fall from a height), and eye-witness accounts or evidence of the surrounding circumstances (e.g. friends who knew the deceased wished to commit suicide).

Due to a lack of physical evidence at the scene (notes may blow away etc), investigators are often reliant on circumstantial evidence. However, it should be noted that homicidal falls from a height are considered to be rare, and from an analysis of the deaths tabulated above, Dr. Surtees identified factors suggesting suicidal falls at Beachy Head.

Factors suggesting suicide at  Beachy Head

In all cases where suicide verdicts were passed, and in 90% of open verdict cases there were 3 or more of these factors. Indeed some open verdict cases exhibited 8 factors. This illustrates the difficulties experienced by some Eastbourne Coroners in attributing a verdict of suicide, ‘beyond all reasonable doubt’, where the deceased made no direct reference to their intent to kill themselves. It is felt by Dr. Surtees that of the 250 deaths, 236 were probably suicide despite there being suicide verdicts in only 134 cases.

During the period 1965-1989 there were only 11 accidental deaths recorded, mostly due to people catching hold of their friends/ partners whilst steadying themselves at the cliff edge.

Have homicidal falls been missed?

The case of Paula Ramsden inevitably raises the question as to whether open verdicts given in the past have concealed homicidal acts. Dr. Surtees thinks this unlikely, and his view is given backing by traditional forensic medicine teaching. However, pathologists carrying out post-mortem examinations on those found to have fallen from Beachy Head should consider the possibility of violence prior to the fall, and make particular effort to exclude marks of injury inconsistent with a fall, such as finger-tip bruising and fractures of the hyoid bone, pointing to some form of neck compression prior to the fall.

There have been 3 unlawful killing verdicts passed between 1965 and 1989, relating to persons driving over the edge whilst carrying passengers, and in 1999 there was a case similar to that of Mrs Ramsden, where a woman was cleared of pushing her husband over the cliff top, when a key witness was discredited. The possibility for deaths caused by an unwitnessed homicidal push therefore exists in the case of deaths at Beachy Head.

Why Commit Suicide at Beachy Head?

If most of the deaths occurring at Beachy Head are due to suicide, why does the location present such a lure to desperate people?

It is clear that deaths at  Beachy Head attract local and national publicity, and it has been shown that such publicity results in suicidal mimicry (Gunnell 1994 pp.1446-7). The lethality of injuries sustained from a 500 foot fall (Mason et al 2000 pp.313-326) appeals to some, whilst the ease of access (one can drive straight up to the edge in places) and lack of preparation necessary appeals to others.

Conclusion

Beachy Head is a dramatic natural landmark that draws tourists and those intent on committing suicide alike.

Most deaths at  Beachy Head display several circumstantial factors suggesting suicide. However, despite homicidal falls from a height traditionally being thought of as rare occurrences, some deaths at Beachy Head, such as that of Paula  Ramsden, raise considerable suspicion. A lack of physical evidence prevents such cases being proven to the criminal standard of proof, and the Coroner must be satisfied with passing an ‘open’ verdict.

References

1.  GUNNELL. D. (1994), ‘Reporting Suicide – The effect of media coverage on patterns of self harm’, BMJ 308: 1446-47 1994

2.  MASON. J.K., PURDUE. B.N. (2000), ‘The Pathology of Trauma’, Arnold Publishers

3. SMITH. L. (2002), ‘Cliff-fall husband may be killer, says Coroner’, The Times April 16 2002 p.3

4.  SURTEES. S.J. (1997), ‘Beachy Head’, SB Publications

5. VANEZIS. P., BUSUTTIL A. (1996), ‘Suspicious Death Scene Investigation’, Arnold Publishers

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