The former husband of a nurse accused of murdering three hospital patients has broken his silence about his life with her.

Paul Booth has revealed how Anne Grigg-Booth was a broken woman at the time of the alleged murders which senior detectives remain convinced she committed.

Grigg-Booth, 52, was found dead at her rented home last September before the charges against her could be heard before a Crown Court jury.

Mr Booth has revealed that his former wife of 20 years was an alcoholic, had huge debts and had been deeply troubled by the IRA Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland.

The male nurse, whose marriage ended shortly after she was arrested in 2003, said he had finally spoken out because he says her death robbed her of the chance to tell her story.

Mr Booth said that shortly before her arrest Grigg-Booth had sunk into alcoholism and was in so much debt the family home had been repossessed.

He said she was working long shifts under great pressure as a night nurse practitioner, on occasions working 14 nights consecutively.

Criminal proceedings against Grigg-Booth, a nurse at Airedale Hospital at Steeton, near Keighley, were discontinued after her death. A coroner ruled she had died accidentally after overdosing on anti-depressants.

Her trial had been due to take place this spring at Bradford Crown Court.

She was accused of murdering June Driver, 67, in July 2000, Eva Blackburn, 75, in November 2001, and 96-year-old Annie Midgley, in July 2002.

She also faced an accusation of trying to kill Michael Parker, 42, in June 2002, and 13 counts of unlawfully administering poison to 12 patients.

After her death, Detective Superin-tendent Phil Sedgwick, who led the investigation, said: "The police and the CPS believe she committed these offences, but now there will not be the chance to prove that in court."

But Mr Booth, of Colne, Lancashire, insisted his former wife was innocent of the murder charges and that she was a victim of "flawed hospital management" in her role as a senior night nurse practitioner. He claims proper checks and balances were "not in place or vigorously enforced".

"I'm sure that what Anne did was what she felt she was doing for the right reasons," he said. "Most nurses will feel that There but for the Grace of God go I'.

"She was, of all the nurses I have worked with, the finest especially in critical situations. She always remained calm, competent and patient.

"There are many people who owe their lives or their recovery from serious illness to Anne."

At the time of her arrest, her responsibilities included site management at night. She had a large clinical workload and staff issues to handle, he said.

But Mr Booth said she became obsessed by work, to the detriment of family life. Her drinking increased, and she worked "ridiculously" long periods at nights.

But Mr Booth said she had managed to hide her alcohol problem from him and the rest of her family an addiction she never admitted.

"But I can say categorically that she never drank at work or ever went to work under the influence of alcohol," he said. "It was always at home."

Also unknown to the family were her debts, so high tens of thousands of pounds that eventually their home in Cowling, near Skipton, was repossessed.

"They only came to light when the house was repossessed," Mr Booth said. "I thought it was virtually paid for. Anne dealt with all the finances. I trusted her."

It was at this time that some of the incidents involving the patients arose, he said.

She was eventually forced to take sick leave with chest pains and exhaustion.

She was later suspended from work and then charged with the murder offences.

Mr Booth said his former wife had not fully recovered from the premature death of her mother in 1989. And he said she had suffered after witnessing the horrors of the Omagh bombing where she was one of the first voluntary nurses on the scene.

"I believe she never came to terms with what she witnessed there," Mr Booth said. "She never admitted she was troubled by it."

The family had been on holiday in the Irish town at the time of the IRA bombing in August 1998, when 29 people died and hundreds were injured. They were staying with a friend when he got the alert following the blast.

The pair were among the first medical staff to deal with victims coming into the accident and emergency department. "She never really dealt with that dreadful incident," Mr Booth said.

"Anne was a unique, formidable personality. She was a person of contrasts on the one hand very kind, generous and caring, and on the other forceful with a strong sense of self-belief.

"I know some managers were wary of her because her behaviour was seen as extremely assertive, maybe sometimes verging on agg-ressive. However, she would never back down if it involved nurses or patient care. She always made sure the working environment was friendly and caring."

He said respect for her as a nurse became more obvious following her arrest when she received many letters and cards of appreciation from patients and relatives.

Call for inquests into patients deaths

The loved ones of the alleged victims of night nurse Anne Grigg-Booth are calling for inquests into their deaths.

Their lawyer says it will be the only way they can reach "closure" on the tragedy.

Bradford Coroner Roger Whitaker has yet to announce a decision whether to hold inquiries into the deaths of the three patients at Airedale Hospital at Steeton.

Because there are no bodies, if he does decide to go ahead the law requires him to seek special permission.

Jane Driver, 67, died on July 24, 2000, Eva Blackburn, 75, on November 13, 2001, and Annie Midgley, 96, on July 22, 2002.

Their families held funerals before the police launched their inquiry on the arrest of Grigg-Booth in the spring of 2003.

Rick Armstrong, of McKay Solicitors in Leeds which is representing the families of all the deceased, said they were eager for inquests to be held.

He said: "They don't see closure of the case in any other way.

"The NHS inquiry will be behind closed doors and that is not going to satisfy them.

"The closest now they are going to get to closure is at an inquest an inquiry in public."

The West Yorkshire Strategic Health Authority has pledged to hold an independent inquiry into the case.

A spokesman said its independent investigation would look into the systems and processes governing the prescribing and administering of drugs by night nurse practitioners at Airedale between 2000 and 2002.

She said: "While the SHA has been taking steps towards the inquiry, it is aware that setting terms of reference is not practical when decisions as to possible inquests exploring the events have yet to be made.

"The SHA has been advised to delay the commencement of the inquiry until decisions have been made by the coroner with regard to opening inquests."

Adam Cairns, the new chief executive of Airedale NHS Trust, said it was in the same position as the SHA.

After Grigg-Booth's death in September, her solicitor Paul Fitzpatrick revealed that much of the case against Grigg-Booth would have revolved around whether hospital bosses had allowed senior nurses to be given verbal direction from doctors, and to what if any extent the hospital procedures were deficient.

e-mail: clive.white @bradford.newsquest.co.uk