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| Cheryl James: Wait for examination of Deepcut death 'too long' | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A coroner has said the parents of a soldier found shot at Deepcut barracks in Surrey have waited far too long for a proper examination of her death. | |
| Pte Cheryl James, from north Wales, was found dead with a bullet wound to the head in 1995. | Pte Cheryl James, from north Wales, was found dead with a bullet wound to the head in 1995. |
| The 18-year-old was one of four recruits to die at the base in seven years. | The 18-year-old was one of four recruits to die at the base in seven years. |
| Coroner Brian Barker QC said it was regrettable there had not been a more thorough investigation at the time. | |
| The inquest, which is the second into Pte James's death, began in February and heard from more than 100 witnesses. | |
| Pte James's parents, Des and Doreen, are at the court in Woking to hear Mr Barker deliver his findings. | |
| A first inquest into Pte James's death in December 1995 recorded an open verdict. | A first inquest into Pte James's death in December 1995 recorded an open verdict. |
| This second inquest was ordered after High Court judges quashed the original findings. | This second inquest was ordered after High Court judges quashed the original findings. |
| The mother of another soldier who died, Pte Geoff Gray, said she was also applying for the open verdict on her own son's death to be overturned. | |
| Pte Gray, from Seaham, County Durham, was 17 when he was found dead from two gunshot wounds at the base in September 2001. | |
| Diane Gray said: "This case opens the doors for the other families to find out what happened to their children. | |
| "In the next few weeks we will be putting our application forward to the Attorney General to ask him to overturn our original verdict and look into new evidence and hopefully give us a new inquest." | |
| She said the inquest into Pte James had been an awful experience and she felt sorry for Mr and Mrs James. | |
| Surrey Police has apologised to the James family for the questioning by their barrister during the inquest, saying they showed "admirable resilience" throughout their long search for answers. | |
| "Any additional stress caused to the family during the inquest was not intentional and we apologise for any ways they feel Surrey police made the experience worse," it said in a statement. | |
| Follow the latest updates with Cheryl James inquest Live | |
| Who were the Deepcut four? Background to the deaths and timeline of events. | Who were the Deepcut four? Background to the deaths and timeline of events. |