A man died in hospital after being arrested as he celebrated his 21st birthday, an inquiry heard.
James MacGregor had been held on charges of alleged threatening or abusive behaviour and common assault. He was taken to a station in Motherwell, Lanarkshire, and placed in a holding cell for two hours where he was 'slumped' and not responding to police staff.
A sheriff heard he had consumed drink and drugs as he celebrated his birthday with friends. MacGregor was spotted with a bag of powder in his mouth in the police station and struggled with two constables before he spat it out.
He was driven in a police van to nearby University Hospital Wishaw to be checked over after being sick in the station. While there MacGregor became aggressive with PC Karen Selley and her colleague PC Craig Wordie and was restrained.
But he went into a 'fit-like' state before a 'bloody foam' began pouring from his mouth and medics rushed to his aid. MacGregor, of Hamilton, Lanarkshire, was kept in hospital and placed in an induced coma but died 10 days later in August 2019.
The circumstances of his death are being probed in a fatal accident inquiry at Hamilton Sheriff Court. PC Selley told the hearing she had been asked to look after MacGregor in the police cell where he was in a 'sleepy state' and had later driven him to hospital.
She said: "When I arrived he was slumped over and not very alert. I'd been told he'd been drinking and consuming drugs while celebrating his 21st birthday.
"I believe he had been awake for more hours than a normal person would be awake for and he had been up all night drinking and I didn't think it was out of the ordinary for him to be in a sleepy state now he had stopped drinking. He was then taken to the charge bar for the custody care plan to be read over to him but I thought he had something in his mouth and my colleague then saw a bag.
"He was taken to the ground and he eventually spat the bag out. We then got him back on his feet and he then intimated he was going to be sick and he brought up a bit of bile and he was taken to hospital."
The constable told the inquiry MacGregor had become angry in the hospital and had attempted to headbutt her and her colleague and had also tried to spit at them. MacGregor was handcuffed and straps were applied before he took a fit.
PC Selley added: "He continued being aggressive for a couple of minutes and then he went into a fit like state where he was shaking uncontrollably and this lasted for maybe 20 seconds before a bloody foam came out of his mouth and I immediately went to get a nurse.
"We moved him onto his side because we were fearful he would choke on his tongue or something. He was taken to resus and the handcuffs and straps were removed while the doctors and nurses started doing tests on him.
"When I left the hospital that night he had been moved to adult critical care, had been sedated and was in a medically induced coma."
The court also heard experts had ruled out any link between his death and the bag of white powder. It was found still sealed when MacGregor spat it out in the police station.
The inquiry before Sheriff Linda Nicolson continues.
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