Police confiscated Peterlee killer’s guns
Durham Police confirm that they took away killer Michael Atherton’s guns in 2008 when fears were raised about his mental health.
But the 42-year-old cab driver successfully applied to have them returned, despite police being told by his family that he had threatened to shoot himself.
As the shooting began, a teenager, understood to be Mrs McGoldrick’s 19-year-old daughter Laura, fled through an upstairs window and raised the alarm.
Owned six guns
Atherton legally owned three rifles and three shotguns, but it is not yet clear which weapon was used in the attacks.
Easington Labour MP Grahame Morris said: “The issue is that in 2008 police responded to a call that there was a domestic argument and Mr Atherton had threatened to self-harm – to shoot himself.
“At the time the police took his firearms from him and he applied to have them returned. Police made an assessment and they were returned to him.”
Peterlee shootings – what are Britain’s gun laws?
Durham Police confirmed that the weapons were taken from Atherton’s house as a precaution, but as he insisted there had been no threat to harm himself, the weapons were returned.
That decision followed national procedure, a force spokesman said. “It was one person’s word against another,” he said. “If there was no grounds for applying for the revocation of a firearms licence the guns would be returned to the firearms licence holder.”
It was one person’s word against another. Durham Police spokesman
Firearms review call
Mr Morris called for a review of firearms legislation, saying: “At the moment it is fairly subjective. The police are responsible for carrying out an assessment of whether an individual is a fit and proper person to hold a firearms licence.
“My view is there should be some input from a suitably qualified health care professional. Secondly, I also wonder whether it is reasonable to keep firearms in a domestic situation.”
Prime Minister David Cameron’s official spokesman said the government had no plans to review Britain’s gun laws, which were “amongst the toughest in the world”.
He said: “We are trying to balance the need to protect public safety with the need to make sure those controls are practical and work.”
Durham Police have referred the killings to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.