Inquest into the Death of William Scott BARTLETT

Inquest into the Death of William Scott BARTLETT

Delivered on :7 March 2018

Delivered at : Perth

Finding of : Coroner King

Recommendations :N/A

Orders/Rules : N/A

Suppression Order : N/A

Summary : At the time of his death the deceased was in police custody after he had been the subject of a citizen’s arrest. He was 36 years old.

On 24 September 2015 the deceased was walking aimlessly on Eden Street in West Perth. He was under the influence of methylamphetamine and was acting erratically. Witnesses from a gym observed him smash the windscreen of a parked car so they chased him, restrained him on the ground and contacted police. The deceased resisted their restrain with an unusual strength, but by the time police officers arrived he had stopped struggling.

Police officers handcuffed the deceased and were in the process of telling him that he was under arrest when they realised that he was unresponsive. They called for an ambulance. The deceased then stopped breathing, so they administered chest compressions. Ambulance paramedics took the deceased to the emergency department Royal Perth Hospital, but his condition deteriorated and he died the next morning.

A forensic pathologist concluded that the cause of death was hypoxic brain injury and myocardial infarction following cardiac arrest during restraint in a man with likely drug effect.

The Coroner was satisfied that the force used to restrain the deceased was appropriate in the circumstances and that the restraint did not cause or contribute to the death. Death occurred by way of misadventure.

Catch Words : Police Custody : Restraint : Coronary Artery Atherosclerosis : Methylamphetamine : Hypoxic Brain Injury : Misadventure

Last updated: 30-Apr-2019

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