SEVERAL of the decisions that led to the release of a murderer who went on to kill again will be scrutinized over the coming weeks as an inquest was opened into the death of Cherylee Shennan.

The Rawtenstall woman was brutally killed by her partner Paul O’Hara in 2014 after he had been released from prison on life licence after killing his previous partner, Janine Waterworth.

O’Hara had been out of jail for just 23 months when he killed again.

But the 47-year-old, who had spent 14 years behind bars for the killing of his first partner, was subject to supervision and monitoring by the National Probation Service when he killed again, leading to questions being raised over the way in which the authorities were monitoring him.

The Preston-based inquest is due to hear from police, probation and social services over the next four-weeks to establish whether there were systematic failures in the way authorities dealt with O’Hara after his release.

The coroner has identified several issues that are to be considered by a jury including whether there was sufficient assessment of the risks O’Hara posed to others, monitoring of his licence and monitoring of his drug and alcohol use.

The way in which the National Probation Service and other agencies managed the risks posed to Ms Sheenan along with any other systemic failings that led to her death will also be reviewed.

The inquest is scheduled to last for four-weeks.