Lilian Louise Beck

Lilian Louise Beck died following an illegal operation.

She had collapsed whilst on a train coming from Waterloo, London to Guildford and was taken to a cottage hospital in Walton-on-Thames. She was later transferred to the County Hospital in Redhill where she died on Friday 19 June 1942.

Her mother said that Lilian Beck had said nothing to her about expecting a child, and said that when she went to see her in the cottage hospital in Walton, Lilian Beck told her that she had had a miscarriage and that she had fallen while on an escalator at a London tube station.

It was heard that at the time, Lilian Beck's husband had begun proceedings for a divorce in consequence of a written confession that Lilian Beck had made to him.

At her inquest it was heard that the fall had had nothing to do with Lilian Beck's death but that she had been somewhere where she had allowed herself to be interfered with, and that it was that interference that had caused her death.

Lilian Beck's death was determined to have been due to septic peritonitis due to internal injury resulting from the use of an instrument by some person or persons unknown. When the jury at her inquest returned their verdict, they added a rider stating that they were 'unfavourably impressed by some of the witnesses'.

After the jury returned their verdict, the coroner said that that in law, their finding was one of murder by some person or persons unknown and that he recorded that verdict accordingly.

The jury also stated that they were satisfied that Lilian Beck had not used the instrument on herself.

Her husband had been a gunner in the Royal Artillery and Lilian Beck had been a typist in a Guildford office.

Lilian Beck had lived in Barncot, Wonersh, near Guildford.