Death of Scots man in police custody 'might have been avoided'
10.05.2024 - 17:49
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
A sheriff has ruled that the death of a young man in police custody could have been avoided.
Warren Fenty was 20 when he died from a drug overdose at Kittybrewster Police Station in Aberdeen in 2014. He had been arrested after discharging himself from Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, against medical advice, and was being held in the station's custody suite.
The fatal accident inquiry into his death, which was the longest ever to take place in Scotland, was concluded on Friday. Derek Pyle, the sheriff principal of Grampian, Highlands and Islands, said that custody officers should have conducted cell checks of Mr Fenty in accordance with the then standard operating procedure.
He said in a written ruling that was an opportunity which might have led to Mr Fenty’s readmission into hospital which "might have avoided his death".
Sheriff Principal Pyle said: "I have concluded that no one individual can be held responsible. Indeed, all those involved, whether medical practitioners or police officers, were doing their best in what proved to be quite exceptional circumstances.
"Nevertheless, I do identify certain institutional failures by Police Scotland which, while not on the evidence being the cause of death or indeed materially contributing to it, resulted in missed opportunities to have Mr Fenty returned to hospital where it is likely, although by no means certain, that he would have survived."
Sheriff Principal Pyle took over the inquiry earlier this year after the original sheriff could no longer continue due to "personal health reasons".
He added: "The investigation of Mr Fenty’s death has taken far too long. It is now 10 years since the event."
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