Family calls for ‘Kyle’s Law’ after murderer was legally allowed to organise victim's funeral
Kyle Pugh was killed in 2022 by his estranged wife, who was charged in November 2024
When Kyle Pugh was murdered in 2022, his family believed that the police investigation into his death would quickly lead to charges against his wife, Amy Pugh, who had been arrested in connection with the case.
However, Amy Pugh was not charged with Kyle's murder until November 2024.
In the meantime, the coroner informed the family that the police had released Kyle’s body—and that Amy, was legally allowed to organise his funeral.
Kyle’s father, Keith Pugh, said the call from the coroner was a 'traumatic' experience:
“Legally, they’re bound to release Kyle’s body to his wife because the law is innocence until proven guilty,” he said. “However, she was the only suspect and the police believed they had enough evidence to take her to court, but they needed confirmation from the CPS before they charged her.”
He described the distress of having to ring around funeral directors in an attempt to find out which one Amy had appointed:
“The most traumatic part was ringing around in an attempt to find who she was using to perform the cremation and going through the whole story over and over again.”
According to the family, the coroner had no legal grounds to refuse the release of Kyle’s body. The only way to prevent Amy from proceeding with the funeral was to obtain a letter from a barrister confirming the family were appealing to the High Court to ask a judge to take control of the arrangements.
The cost of this legal intervention amounted to £4,000.
“It is beyond most people being able to access that amount of money,” Keith said.
“One way or another we managed to raise the money and send the letter, which blocked it.
"But for the sake of justice, it should be affordable to ask a judge to make a decision—or allow a coroner to stop a person under investigation for murder from disposing of the body.”
Long-time friend Adam Pearce said he resorted to setting up a crowdfunding page to help the family cover the fees.
Adam is also campaigning against domestic abuse through a 3 peaks challenge next May. All funds raised will be going to the Man Kind initiative in light of Kyle.
What is ‘Kyle’s Law’? The change family want to see
Kyle Pugh’s family is now campaigning for what they are calling “Kyle’s Law”—a proposed change that would give coroners greater authority when a next of kin is also a suspect in a murder investigation.
Under current rules, coroners must release a body to the legal next of kin, even if that person is under police investigation. In Kyle’s case, this meant that his wife Amy, later charged with his murder, was initially permitted to take full control of his funeral arrangements. The coroner had no power to intervene unless the family could provide a costly barrister’s letter indicating that they were seeking a High Court review.
Kyle’s family say this loophole leaves bereaved relatives vulnerable and can place control of a victim’s remains in the hands of the very person suspected of causing their death.