A businessman rang 999 and blamed police in a 19-word call before jumping to his death from an A500 bridge. Staffordshire Police were hauled before Nicholas Boulton’s inquest on Monday (May 22).
Mr Boulton had been bailed to stay at Talke Travelodge following his second arrest on suspicion of domestic violence. However, just hours after getting his Travelodge key, the 64-year-old, from Georges Way, Bignall End, walked to the A500 bridge, made the 999 call, and jumped onto the carriageway.
He was struck by a Ford Fiesta, suffered a devastating brain injury, and died later that day, StokeonTrentLive reports. An earlier inquest heard Mr Boulton had also made two 999 calls to West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) in the hours before his death but paramedics were so busy no-one came.
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Now both Staffordshire Police and WMAS have been cleared of any wrongdoing following Mr Boulton's death on December 28, 2021. The inquest heard from Nigel Warrillow, an assistant case manager for Staffordshire Police's professional standards department. He outlined a timeline from the moment of Mr Warrilow's first arrest to his death.
He said: "At 2.05am on December 24, officers received a report from someone who claimed their partner was being aggressive. The partner said they needed the police. Officers attended and found Mr Boulton intoxicated. He was given a verbal warning. At 11.41pm on December 24, officers received a report from the partner who asked for police to attend and went on to say the partner was attacking them.
"At 12.05am on December 25, officers attended and found that Nick was intoxicated. He explained to officers that he suffered from depression. He said he had no thoughts of suicide. He was released at 11.46am that morning. The following evening, at 8.12pm, he was arrested for assault after another call and was taken to hospital.
"At 7.11am the following day, he was returned from the hospital and went to police custody. At 4.39pm, he was released from custody and issued a domestic violence prevention notice, although temporary accommodation had been booked for him at the Travelodge in Talke.
"At 12.14am on December 28, officers from Staffordshire Police received a call from Nick saying, 'Hi. Just called to say goodbye from me to you. I really don't care. You have let me down'. At 12.44am officers arrived at the scene to find a male body in the road on the A500. He was taken to the Royal Stoke University Hospital where he died the same day."
North Staffordshire assistant coroner Duncan Richie delivered a suicide verdict.
He said: "The medical cause of death is that he suffered from a devastating brain injury after suffering from a very serious collision with a car on the A500. A CT scan revealed multiple fractures to his torso and bleeding in his brain. The medical staff decided his condition was terminal and he passed away on December 28.
"A few days earlier he was arrested late on Christmas Eve and was intoxicated. He told custody staff that he did not have current thoughts of self-harm. However, a few days later he was arrested for assault. He told officers he had taken a number of paracetamol tablets. After being arrested, he was discharged from hospital and taken for questioning. After consulting with mental health staff, officers were satisfied he could be released. Nick's deliberate actions caused his death. I am satisfied this death can be ruled as suicide."
Referring to the role of police and paramedics, the coroner added: "Nick said repeatedly he wanted to take his own life. It was heard how he was dealt with in a way to calm him down. Ambulance demand was extremely high and hospital handover at the time was seven hours.
"WMAS was unfortunate that night but I cannot find causation. My findings will not include neglect from WMAS but that does not make his death any less tragic.
"As for the involvement of Staffordshire Police, we have the comment that he felt let down by Staffordshire Police. It is clear to me his arrest was very much at the forefront of his mind. But considering why he did what he did lies outside the scope of the inquest.
"Considering that there was no misconduct found, there was no cause or link to his death. I don't find there was neglect on the advising of his release from custody. The police did what they could but they were unable to get to him in time. It is unfortunate but I do not find failings of the police in response to his goodbye call."
Mr Boulton's grieving relatives have paid tribute to their loved one.
A family spokesman said: "He was very nice and caring. He was very fond of animals and his godchildren, if you were to meet him and ask for help he would always give 100 per cent. Unfortunately due to the depression and alcohol, that changed him. That was not the real Nick. His funeral was cast all across the world."
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