Cat-row dad who pulled gun on son died of heart attack
A MAN who pulled a loaded pistol on his son, before deliberately causing a gas leak which led to fears of a massive explosion, died of a heart attack in prison, an inquest heard.
Michael Slevin, 63, was several months into a six-year prison sentence when he was found collapsed in his cell by a fellow inmate at HMP Buckley Hall, in Rochdale.
The former mechanic was jailed in October, 2016, after a row with his son over a cat, which resulted in him threatening him with a home-made handgun at their home in Eccles. His wife, Karen Slevin, later discovered that her husband had removed a pipe from the gas meter - causing a life-threatening leak, which led to eight homes being evacuated.
He was jailed for six years after admitting damaging property, recklessly endangering life, possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear and possessing prohibited items.
Mr Slevin was sent to Strangeways but was later transferred to HMP Buckley Hall.
An inquest heard that he had been a “popular” and ‘well-respected’ inmate at the Category C prison.
He was a smoker and drinker but had no known physical health problems when he entered the prison.
On February 20, last year, the alarm was raised when another inmate discovered Mr Slevin slumped in his cell, after suffering a heart attack. Mr Slevin was attended to by the prison’s health care team, the court was told.
He was transferred to hospital in Bury, but was pronounced dead a short time later.
A post-mortem confirmed he had died from a heart attack as a result of coronary heart disease.
Mrs Slevin said she felt her husband had been ‘let down’ after failures to adequately monitor his blood pressure were accepted by the prison’s health care provider.
A cardiologist concluded that the failure to monitor Mr Slevin’s blood pressure had ‘no material bearing’ on his death, but the court was told that steps had been taken to improve the monitoring of prisoners’ health.
Coroner for Manchester North, Lisa Hashmi, said: “The omissions by the health care team were unacceptable.
“There should have been a followup and I have no doubt that, in the community, this would have taken place.”
She concluded that Mr Slevin had died from natural causes.