Mum-of-three Denise Cutter died from smoke inhalation from a fire she started shortly after her husband David had been arrested for assaulting her.

The tragic events started after she contacted police to report an assault by her husband late on March 6.

The final few hours of the devoted mum's life were revealed at an emotional inquest into her death, during which her dad broke down and sobbed.

It heard that after being taken off in a police van, Mr Cutter was found to have prescribed drugs on him. Officers returned to the couple's home in The Paddock, Elwick, to search the property for any more they suspected were being unlawfully held.

Just minutes after the search ended, an anonymous 999 call was made by a woman from a call box on nearby Elwick Green in the early hours of March 7 in which she told police: "Tell him he has won and we are dead, OK?"

Within hours of the call, believed to have been made by Mrs Cutter, the 43-year-old mum was found unconscious in the front bedroom of the house.

Fire crews were alerted by a neighbour around 6am who reported smelling smoke.

Mrs Cutter was rushed to the University Hospital of Hartlepool and, despite attempts to revive her, she was pronounced dead at the hospital where she actually worked.

An inquest at Hartlepool Magistrates' Court yesterday heard that when police spoke to her in the early hours of March 7 she appeared sober.

But tests after her death revealed she had an alcohol reading equivalent to being four times over the drink-drive limit and traces of prescription drugs were also discovered.

A pathologist later gave the cause of death as the effects of carbon monxide contributed to by alcohol toxicity.

Hartlepool coroner Malcom Donnelly said: "She had taken drink on board, it was the middle of the night, she had gone to her bedroom and closed the door. I don't think she would have been aware of what was going on downstairs.

"I don't think she intended to kill herself.I'm not going to speculate why she did what she did, but there's no doubt she was responsible for the fire being set.

"I think she probably, for whatever reason we will never know, had a few goes at starting a fire and when they failed she went to bed fed up with the whole thing not knowing there was a fire smouldering downstairs.

"There may have been a history of domestic problems but it's very, very unusual for that to lead directly to someone taking their own life.

"People with knowledge of life and death, and as a staff nurse she was one of them, would know what to do to take their own life and this lady did not intend to do that."

He recorded a verdict of misadventure.

Mr Cutter attended the hearing but was not called to give evidence.

After the hearing Cleveland Police said Mr Cutter would not be facing any charges in connection with either the domestic assault or the possession of prescribed drugs.