A MAN armed with a crossbow when he was shot dead by a police marksman deliberately provoked the officer into harming him, an inquest has found.

The jury at Keith Richards' inquest determined today that the 47-year-old was lawfully killed by Durham Police in the early hours of May 12, 2009.

Furthermore, the jury found that armed officers did identify themselves correctly when they attended Mr Richards' home in Cheapside, Shildon, County Durham.

The jury of six men and five women returned a unanimous verdict on the three questions posed to them by Durham Coroner, Andrew Tweddle, during the 13-day inquest at the Work Place, Newton Aycliffe.

However, a further two questions proved harder to resolve, resulting in majority verdicts after more than two days of deliberations.

The jury found, by a margin of ten to one, that the training the three armed officers had received was adequate to deal with someone armed with a crossbow.

In addition, the jury found, by a margin of nine to two, that Mr Richards had intended to cause the armed officers death or serious harm.

Mr Richards was heavily intoxicated that night, mired in debt and had shouted at police from a bedroom window that a drink-driving conviction could ruin his life.

The agitated father-of-two fired several crossbow bolts that night and at one point told unarmed officers to “bring on the armed police” before he killed one of them or took his own life.

Officer E was one of three police marksmen who took up position behind a wall about 40 metres to the rear of Mr Richards’ home.

He fired the fatal shot which the jury heard went through Mr Richards' right wrist and into his neck.

His injuries were consistent with him holding a crossbow in a left-handed stance at the time he was shot but the jury heard Mr Richards was right-handed.

Armed officers told the jury that Mr Richards had taken aim at them the moment they opened fire.

A ballistics expert told the jury that in order to hit the armed officers from where Mr Richards was standing he would have either had to lean out of the window or adopt a left handed stance.