LOU WATERS, CNN ANCHOR: A court in Britain wants to find out whether a doctor who's already been convicted of several murders actually killed hundreds of his patients during a quarter century in practice. CNN's Margaret Lowrie has our report.</s>MARGARET LOWRIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Families of suspected victims of convicted serial killer Henry Shipman arrived in Manchester for the start of what promised to be a lengthy public inquiry. Chaired by High Court Judge Jane Janet Smith, the hearings will examine the deaths of some 459 patients of the former general practitioner between 1974 and 1998, when he was arrested. But inquiry officials say it's unlikely there will be cause for suspicion in many of those deaths. Shipman is already jailed for life, found guilty last year of murdering 15 female patients with lethal doses of a heroin substitute. Subsequent inquests found him guilty of another 25 unlawful deaths, including 81-year-old Hilda Hibbert. Her granddaughter attended the inquiry.</s>JANE ASHTON-HIBBERT, VICTIM'S GRANDDAUGHTER: It was some kind a relief for all the families that I know that haven't been to the court or haven't had inquests and they haven't had their cases looked at yet. So, initially that is what I'm hoping that the judge id going to look over the case thoroughly and be able to give recommendations.</s>LOWRIE: Shipman will not attend the hearings. The inquiry is expected to last two years, divide into three phases: the first, to be completed by the end of the year, will produce an interim report establishing the number of deaths for which Harold Shipman is believed responsible. He will be given a chance to respond. The report will also allow the coroner to amend the death certificates of further victims without having to go through a full inquest. (on camera): In its subsequent phases, the inquiry will examine how Harold Shipman was able to kill so many people over such a long period of time without being detected, and it will look at ways to make sure it never happens again. Margaret Lowrie, CNN, London.
Inquiries Begin into Deaths Linked to English Doctor