originally published:
29th October 2009

The actions of police officers did not contribute to the death of a man being held in custody, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has found.

Stephen South, 36, from Blackpool, died in the town’s police station on 8 September 2007, but tests have failed to establish a cause of death. The IPCC identified procedural errors and a nonchalant approach by officers to national policies and guidelines.

But it concluded there was no evidence these contributed to Mr South’s death. An inquest on Wednesday returned an open verdict on his death. Mr South was arrested after police responded to a report of a domestic violence incident on 7 September. He was also wanted for failing to answer bail on a shoplifting charge.

Due to his intoxicated state a custody sergeant decided Mr South was unfit to be read his rights or to undergo a formal risk assessment. He was put into a Life Signs Monitoring System (LSMS) cell and placed on a schedule of 15-minute visits.

The LSMS cell contains sensors which detect movement, including breathing, which can be monitored from a screen in the custody reception area. The system also records when the cell door or hatch is opened.

While in the LSMS cell, and until Mr South was declared fit to be read his rights, a total of 25 scheduled visits were made to the cell. The LSMS system showed the cell door was opened once and the hatch opened six times. On the remaining 18 occasions neither the hatch nor the door was opened.

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