Mother Of 7 Hanged Self After She Discovered That She Was Pregnant Again

A mother of seven quietly went upstairs and hanged herself while at home with her children and husband after she discovered she was pregnant again.

Carla Murtagh, from Shard End, Birmingham, had booked an abortion for October 28 but later changed her mind and decided to keep the baby. Nine days later the 34-year-old, who had a history of depression, was found hanged by her distraught husband Matthew who went upstairs to look for her after he thought she was 'acting quiet'.

He had left the house with two of their children to buy a birthday cake from the supermarket. When they returned, he said Mrs Murtagh had gone upstairs and was 'acting quiet'.
 'She went upstairs and told me that she wanted to be left alone,' he said.

'I went downstairs to dish up the dinner and went up to get her.' He found his wife hanged in the bedroom and called for help.

He attempted CPR as paramedics arrived, and Mrs Murtagh was taken by ambulance to Heartlands Hospital.

The inquest heard how she and Mr Murtagh already had seven children, aged between 15 years and 14 months.

They had been 'shocked' to find Mrs Murtagh was pregnant again in August 2016 and wanted an abortion.

'We were shocked because it wasn't planned,' said husband Matthew. 'She considered having an abortion because we already had so many children.

'She was upset, and we were discussing how we were going to have another baby.'

Mrs Murtagh, who suffered with conditions including depression, consulted her GP at the end of August about her pregnancy and told him she wanted an abortion.