Man died after call to police was downgraded

A young man died after a call to the police by paramedics seeking their assistance was “downgraded”.

Craig Davis, 31, died on August 14, 2015 at his home in Ashford after suffering breathing difficulties.

He had put an emergency call into South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAMB) but during the call the line went silent.

While paramedics were en route to his home, they called Kent Police to request assistance from officers in case it was necessary to gain entry into the house.

The initial call handler graded the incident as one requiring an ‘immediate’ police response.

Subsequently, f ol l owing SECAMB’s call to them, Kent Police downgraded the incident.

SECAMB then contacted police a second time requesting their estimated time of arrival.

Officers arrived on the scene shortly after but Mr Davis was found dead in the house.

Following this, an investigation was carried out by the Independ- ent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

It found that the decision to downgrade the incident was due to a misinterpretation of the information on the incident log and did not find any case to answer for disciplinary action.

However, the report recommends that Kent Police and SECAMB clarify their policies on forced entry into homes in emergency situations and consider a joint agreement to ensure that their roles and powers are clearly understood.

Kent Police has agreed with the recommendations and says it is working towards their implementation.

IPCC Commissioner Mary Cunneen said: “My first thoughts are with Mr Davis’ family and friends following his death.

“It is vital that emergency services work well together and following our investigation we have recommended that Kent Police work with SECAMB to avoid any confusion in the future.”