SIX officers from Devon and Cornwall Police will face misconduct proceedings over the death of a man with a history of mental illness, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said today.

Thomas Orchard, 32, died in October 2012 after he had been held down, handcuffed and placed in restraints with an impermeable webbing belt around his face for five minutes.

Mr Orchard, who suffered from schizophrenia and was living independently in supported accommodation at the time of his death, had been arrested in Exeter city centre following reports that he was behaving bizarrely and seemed disorientated.

When he arrived at Heavitree Road police station, triple limb restraints were applied and an emergency response belt was wrapped around Mr Orchard’s face as he was carried to a cell.

He was left lying unresponsive on a cell floor. By the time officers re-entered his cell, he was in cardiac arrest. He was pronounced dead in hospital seven days later.

Last March, three police staff were cleared at Bristol crown court of Mr Orchard’s manslaughter.

Sergeant Jan Kingshott, 45, and civilian detention officers Simon Tansley, 39, and Michael Marsden, 56, argued that the force used was proportionate and lawful.

The IOPC submitted a report to Devon and Cornwall Police stating that seven officers and staff had cases to answer for gross misconduct, but the force had “disagreed with this view.”

After further discussions, the IOPC “directed the force to hold misconduct hearings for six of the officers and staff relating to allegations over their use of force,” the watchdog added.

The question of whether these hearings will be held in private or public will now be considered.

In a statement, Mr Orchard’s family said they had been “shocked and outraged” by Devon and Cornwall Police’s “persistent refusal to hold disciplinary hearings to establish if their staff seriously breached professional standards.”
 
The family added: “Only by holding open, honest and transparent hearings can our family’s confidence be restored and the public interest be served.

“We hope that the media and public will join us to demand rigour and fairness from this process.”