4 October 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Did duo die from police brutality?

originally by: Morning Star
published: 16th September 2010

Human rights campaigners have said that serious questions must be asked after the deaths of two mental health patients in a matter of days following police restraint.

Olaseni Lewis, a 23-year-old student from south London, and 52-year-old Colin Holt from Gillingham were both restrained by police in separate incidents on August 31 this year.

Mr Holt collapsed and died after being restrained by officers at his home while Mr Lewis suffered fatal injuries having been restrained by up to eight police officers at Bethlem Royal Hospital in Bromley. While the details of Mr Holt’s death are unclear it is understood he left the hospital where he had been sectioned and returned home.

15 September 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Care assessed after police custody death in Warwickshire

originally published by: BBC News
published: 7th September 2010

Care for a man who collapsed in police custody and died was below the standard expected, an investigation has found.

It said Sean Walsh, 42, was taken in 2008 to the Warwickshire Justice Centre in Nuneaton and assessed as being unfit for questioning as he was intoxicated. The Independent Police Complaints Commission added officers did not seek medical advice at appropriate times.

Warwickshire Police said it had reacted quickly to recommendations identified through the IPCC investigation process. It added that one officer had had a written warning and another had received formal words of advice, but no actions taken by the force could have prevented the death.

24 August 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Sean Rigg family hold a vigil on the 2nd anniversary of his death

originally published by: BBC News
21 August 2010

The family and friends of a mentally-ill man who died in police custody have held a vigil to mark the second anniversary of his death. Sean Rigg, 40, of Balham, was arrested in 2008 on suspicion of assaulting an officer and taken to Brixton police station, where he died hours later.

An inquiry by the IPCC ended in February, but the findings have not yet been released. The Metropolitan Police said it remains committed to the investigation.

Mr Rigg’s family say he was “fit and healthy with no illicit drugs or alcohol found in his body at the time of his death”. He died within hours of being taken into custody. Police said he was seen by a doctor after he fell ill, shortly before he died.