An autopsy report last January ruled out foul play in the death of a 51-year-old man but his wife and children still have no access to their house, which had been sealed pending a magisterial inquiry.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, Audrey*, 45, told this newspaper that because the inquiry has not yet been closed, she has had to continue renting out a property, costing her some €420 a month.

Audrey had moved out of the matrimonial home together with their children, aged 16 and six, back in 2014 after their marriage broke down due to her husband’s longstanding alcohol problem. Despite the fact that they were in the process of legally separating, she nevertheless maintained contact with him.

The man suffered from bouts of illness due to diabetes and coronary artery disease, having undergone a bypass when he turned 40.

On January 7, he failed to respond when the nurse called on him to administer insulin. He was found on the ground in a corner behind a chest of drawers, having suffered from organ failure.

“I was in shock and didn’t quite know what had hit me,” Audrey recalled. “I remember that an inventory was made and that the police asked me for the house keys. They also took his laptop, camera and mobile phone.”

Pending the course of the magisterial inquiry into his death, the house was sealed.

On January 11, an autopsy ruled that her estranged husband had died from natural causes. Audrey has since filed a court application to request access to the house, which now belongs to her and her children.

Why am I at the mercy of mediocre court laws?

“I don’t know how long the procedure will take. When I had asked the investigating police inspector, he had said that he had case files dating back to a year and a half. It does not augur well.

“I find this to be extremely unfair. The autopsy ruled that he passed away from natural causes and, in fact, I was not even interrogated.

“Why am I at the mercy of mediocre court laws? I feel as if the law is against me and not in my favour. I have been a single mother for years – I’ve always had to be very independent.”

As a result, Audrey can neither live in the house nor proceed to refurbish and maintain it in order to sell it.

Contacted by this newspaper, lawyer Jason Azzopardi said the issue required a radical rethinking and an overhaul in the law.

“I’m not saying it’s necessarily the solution but there could be an argument for ensuring that specific inquiring magistrates are relieved from all other duties, allowing them to focus solely on inquests.

“As things stand, they have to attend to compilations of evidence, preside over district hearings, arraignments, the rent regulation board or the land arbitration board. Therefore, they often take long to close inquiries. Only an inquiring magistrate can order the property to be unsealed,” he said.

He knew of cases where the inquiry was concluded 13 months ago but the magistrate had not yet had the time to write up the conclusions and submit them to the Attorney General.

“Over the years, the criminal code has been amended in a piecemeal fashion. It’s time for a high-powered review commission body – which is above political parties and is led by former members of the judiciary – to conduct an overview of the criminal code.”

In a parliamentary question submitted by Labour MP Etienne Grech, the government was asked about sealed properties pending magisterial inquiries, how long such cases took on average before the properties were unsealed and whether any compensation could be granted to the owners who suffered financial losses from the delay.

Justice Minister Owen Bonnici had answered that since magisterial inquiries were highly confidential in nature, the court administration would not have access to such information.

*Name has been changed to protect the person’s identity.