Man found not guilty of killing girlfriend as she tried to stop him leaving her
A man accused of killing his girlfriend as she tried to stop him leaving has been found not guilty.
Ian Curson, 42, was leaving the home of Caragh Eaton, 28, in his Range Rover on September 6 2022 when the tragedy occurred.
The court heard that Mr Curson was aiming to leave Eaton - who lived on Field Edge Drive, in Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire - for good.
She suffered two separate head injuries during the incident, which took place in September last year. Much of the deliberations centred around whether Ms Eaton had fallen , or whether she had been struck by Mr Curson .
Prosecutors argued at the beginning of the trial - which took place at Leicester Crown Court - that it was a blow by Mr Curson which destabilised Ms Eaton and left her “stunned”. They said Ms Eaton leaned into his window to stop him going and he struck her with an item and broke the skull behind her ear, causing a fatal brain injury. They said Mr Curson drove off as Ms Eaton lay in the road.
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Flowers left outside Caragh Eaton's home in Barrow Upon Soar (PA)But Mr Curson had maintained throughout the trial that Caragh’s injuries had been caused by a fall - not by a physical strike. He said that he had been unaware Ms Eaton had been hurt, and did not believe he had done anything wrong. Mr Curson denied a solicitor at the trial.
Mr Curson said Ms Eaton had been holding onto his car trying to prevent him from leaving, and he pulled her fingers off the car, pushed her a safe distance from his car and drove off slowly. He thought she was still standing in the road while he drove away, he said.
He explained that he and Ms Eaton had recently got back into a relationship after recently separating. Before her death, they had been arguing about another man to whom Ms Eaton had been sending messages during their separation.
Mr Curson said: "I was leaving and I said I wasn't coming back - leaving the relationship. Caragh gets really, really upset because she doesn't like to be on her own." When he got into the car, Ms Eaton stood behind his vehicle in the drive to stop him reversing out.
He told the detectives that he had wanted to return to talk to Miss Eaton - not knowing she was dead. He said that after seeing the police in the area he decided to avoid them because he believed they were there fearing that he would kill himself.
Curson said: "Caragh had said she was going to contact the police about my suicidal thoughts and mental health. I wanted to wait for the police to go so I could go to speak to Caragh."
The jury deliberated for nearly 14 hours before reaching their final verdict. They returned a majority not guilty verdict to the charge of murder and a not guilty verdict to the charge of possession of an offensive weapon.
Mr Curson will be free to return to his home on Fairhaven Road, Leicester. After the jury returned their verdicts on Thursday, Judge Philip Head thanked them for their service and attention throughout the trial.
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