7 November 201621 December 2022 4WardEverUK

‘Excited Delirium’ blamed for deaths in police custody

all credits: Buzz Feed
published: 29 October 2016

During the summer of 2011, 25-year-old Jacob Michael died after being restrained by 11 police officers outside his home. Just 45 minutes prior to his death he had dialled 999 saying he feared for his life.

Witnesses saw Michael being repeatedly hit with police batons, moments after two officers from Cheshire constabulary released pepper spray into his face, the BBC reported. CCTV footage showed officers holding Michael down on the floor. There was evidence that he had broken ribs and a torn liver.

29 September 201621 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Police body cameras ‘cut complaints against officers’ says research

source: BBC News
published: 29 September 2016

Police body cameras can dramatically reduce the number of complaints against officers, research suggests. The Cambridge University study showed complaints by members of the public against officers fell by 93% over 12 months compared with the year before.

Almost 2,000 officers across four UK forces and two US police departments were monitored for the project. Dr Barak Ariel, who led the research, said no other policing measure had led to such “radical” changes.

The study aimed to find out if the use of cameras, which are usually clipped to the top half of an officer’s uniform, affected complaints against police made by the public.

21 February 201621 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Funding is welcome, but root causes of mental illness are growing

source: The Guardian
published: 19 February 2016

The impression is being created of unstoppable momentum towards expansion and improvement of mental health services. Reports, cash and pledges of action are piling up. But it is hard to identify what will change and from where the money will come. Meanwhile, the problems that give rise to mental illnesses are growing.

Hitting hyperbolic heights this week, NHS England promised “the biggest transformation of mental health care across the NHS in a generation”.

Continue reading