Police officers guilty of misconduct after cell death

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-41640758

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Three police officers have been found guilty of misconduct over the death of a man in police custody in Somerset.

David Fournier D'Albe, 40, was arrested for being drunk and disorderly in 2014 but died in custody two days later.

PC Stephen Brawley, PC Ian Bartlett and PC Nick White were accused of failing to tell medical staff he had hit his head in a cell, although it was found they did not contribute to the death.

The Avon and Somerset Police officers were cleared of gross misconduct.

A misconduct hearing heard that Mr Fournier D'Albe had been arrested on 28 December 2014 following a fire in Burnham-on-Sea.

He was taken to a holding cell at Bridgwater Custody Centre, where he fell and suffered a head injury.

He was charged and was due to appear before magistrates two days later, but was found unresponsive in his cell in the early hours and died a short time later from natural causes.

'Committed misconduct'

It was alleged the officers had not told custody staff or medical professionals that Mr Fournier D'Albe had hit his head.

The panel also heard that pava spray had been used during the struggle to restrain him but neither incident had been recorded.

The head injury and the use of force were not contributory factors in Mr Fournier D'Albe's death but the panel found the officers had committed misconduct.

Following the ruling, it decided no sanctions should be imposed on any of the officers.

A further misconduct hearing for Custody Sergeant Ian Flower, who was on duty when Mr Fournier D'Albe died, is due to take place on Tuesday.