A mother-of-six died in hospital clutching a photograph of four of her children who had been killed in a petrol bomb attack on their home nearly two years earlier, an inquest heard on October 5.
Michelle Pearson's family also wrapped a crucifix around her hand as she died following a 'lengthy and courageous' fight, 21 months after her children's deaths.
"We know that she is back with her children," said a family statement read out at the inquest. The tragedy in Walkden, Salford, in December 2017 is now the subject of an inquest hearing, which commenced on Monday at Bolton Coroner's Court, the Manchester Evening News writes.
Family's plea for rehousing
In a statement, Ms Pearson's family revealed how she had been 'pleading with' Salford Council to rehouse her in the weeks leading up to the arson attack.
They said she was 'beyond stressed' by what was described as a 'tit-for-tat feud' that spiralled out of control and ultimately ended in tragedy.
Her children, the family said, were 'petrified' of living at the property on Jackson Street. Four members of the Pearson family - Demi, 14; Brandon, eight; Lacie, seven; and Lia, three - lost their lives after petrol bombs were hurled at the house in the early hours of December 11, 2017.
Convictions and sentences
Their mother, Ms Pearson, survived the attack but died aged 37 almost two years later, having sustained severe burns and spent months in a coma. Zak Bolland and David Worrall, then aged 23 and 25, were handed life sentences and ordered to serve minimum terms of 40 and 37 years respectively following their convictions for the children's murders in May 2018.
Bolland's then girlfriend, Courtney Brierley, who had remained in a nearby vehicle while the attack took place, was jailed for 21 years for manslaughter.
Bolland and Worrall were also found guilty of Michelle's murder at a separate trial in 2021. Brierley admitted manslaughter and received an additional, concurrent, 12-year sentence.
Senior coroner Timothy Brennand, opening the inquest which is expected to last for eight weeks, read out the sentencing remarks of the trial judge, Mr Justice William Davis, to commence proceedings.
Feud and escalating attacks
The inquest heard Mr Justice Davis spoke of a feud 'between some members of the Pearson family and Zac Bolland and Courtney Brierley'. "What lay behind the feud has never been made public," he said.
The inquest heard of vehicles being damaged and Boland smashing windows of the Pearson home with a hammer. Boland was also said to have 'threatened to use fire' on the property.
Police and the fire service, who sealed up her letterbox, were involved, with Mr Justice Davies detailing a 'flurry of tit-for-tat attacks'. Ms Pearson went on to be labelled a 'grass', a word which was spray-painted on the walls of her home.
A wheelie bin in the front garden was also set alight. Mr Justice Davies told of 'a series of relatively trivial incidents gradually increasing in seriousness which had no conceivable justification, but which could and should have gone no further' in his sentencing remarks.
The attack and its aftermath
Following a session of drinking and taking cocaine, Bolland and Worrall, armed with an axe and a machete, travelled to the Pearson residence in the early hours.
The inquest heard they had prepared two petrol bombs - one fashioned from a large clear bottle and another from a beer bottle. Worrall shattered a rear window and hurled one inside, which ignited 'but only to a limited extent'.
Bolland's petrol bomb 'exploded with considerable force' and the ensuing blaze engulfed the property.
"The defendants must have known that they had been responsible for setting on fire an occupied house yet they behaved as if nothing had happened," said the trial judge in her sentencing remarks.
The fire, the inquest heard, was 'swift and deadly'. Coroner Mr Brennand said a homicide investigation commenced and convictions followed.
He said the inquest would aim to examine whether there was 'any predictable threat to life' and 'what could or should have been done that might have prevented these deaths'.
Mr Brennand said it would evaluate and scrutinise 'how state agencies worked together' to manage any risk following Ms Pearson's reports.
"The family are at the heart of this process," he said. "The intention is to give the family a voice". Family 'pen portraits' of the children were read out.
Demi was described as a 'happy and smiley child with a heart of gold'. She was discovered near a bunk bed and pronounced dead at the scene. Brandon was the 'brainbox' of the family who was said to have an 'amazing vocabulary'. "His favourite word was putrid," the family said.
He was known to pick flowers from the park and had a deep love for the Beatles. Lacie had a passion for dancing and was 'a YouTube star in the making', the family said, also honouring Lia as having a 'cheeky laugh and a smile that would melt your heart'. Lia passed away two days later in hospital.
