British police kill a guy who was asking for help and all they get is "advice"

Police were criticised today for dropping a man off at the side of a dual carriageway where he was later killed by a car. The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said officers from the Northamptonshire and Warwickshire forces did not perform their duties satisfactorily in the run-up to Wayne Teasdale's death.

Mr Teasdale, 35, from Coventry, died after he was hit as he walked along the A45 near Dunchurch in Warwickshire in July 2008.

Three constables, a special constable and a member of police staff have been spoken to about their actions in the events leading up to his death, the IPCC said.

The commission's investigation found Mr Teasdale was trying to walk home drunk from Billing Aquadrome in Northampton on July 25. He called relatives at about 7am the following morning to say he was lost. A member of the public contacted police at 8.24am concerned about a man walking next to the A45 near the aquadrome. But officers sent to the area could not find the man, who the IPCC believes was Mr Teasdale.

About 45 minutes later the 35-year-old contacted Northamptonshire Police, saying he was lost and walking along a dual carriageway, telling the call handler he had been drinking and had also smoked some cannabis. A police car found him and he was checked by paramedics then officers took him to the boundary with Warwickshire where he was dropped off at a service station on the A45 at about 10.42am.

Between 10.48am and when Mr Teasdale was hit by a car, Warwickshire Police received a number of calls reporting a man walking alongside and in the carriageway of the A45. They tried to get a police vehicle to the area, the IPCC said, but at about 11.30am he was hit by a car and pronounced dead later that day.

Today the IPCC said the Northamptonshire officer should not have dropped Mr Teasdale off where he did and staff with Warwickshire Police had not appreciated the risk to him. A spokesman said: 'The IPCC investigation found that the Northamptonshire officer who responded to Mr Teasdale's call did not perform his duties to an acceptable standard. 'Having decided it was not safe for Mr Teasdale to walk along the A45 and to then give him a lift, the decision to drop him off in a position with similar dangers was not appropriate.

'It also found that a police officer and member of staff working in Warwickshire Police's control room failed to appreciate the risk posed to Mr Teasdale and therefore ensure the appropriate response was taken by the officers allocated to attend the incident.

'The Warwickshire Police officer and special constable, who were assigned by the control room to deal with the incident, were found to have responded below the acceptable standard. 'On their journey to attend to Mr Teasdale they stopped a driver who was using their mobile phone on a motorway, delaying their arrival.'

The IPCC said the three constables, the special constable and the member of police staff all received words of advice.

Superintendent Andy Tennet, head of professional standards at Northamptonshire Police, said: 'Our deepest sympathy goes out to Mr Teasdale's family. 'The IPCC have conducted a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr Teasdale's death and we fully accept their findings and their decision in respect of the officer involved. 'Lessons have been learnt from this unfortunate incident and, in agreement with the IPCC, the officer involved has been given words of advice.'

Original report here

Update: Note the comments below


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