A coroner has ruled that a Hampshire councillor was unlawfully killed following an attack at his home.

Coroner Jason Pegg ruled at Winchester Crown Court on Monday, April 19 that Cllr James Nash "suffered injuries" in Upper Enham following an assault by Alex Sartain. He found that Nash had tried to defend himself from Sartain, knocking away the muzzle of an improvised shotgun as it was fired.

He was then knocked to the floor after the gun jammed and Alex Sartain 'stamped repeatedly'. A post-mortem gave the cause of death as "unsurvivable" blunt force trauma to the head.

James's wife Sarah paid tribute to her husband at the inquest, calling him "a kind and generous man who wanted to help people in the community at large."

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