Webley v St George's Hospital NHS Trust & Anor
2014
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
- MR JUSTICE BEAN
Areas of Law
- Tort Law
- Health Law
- Civil Procedure
2014
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The case involved the Claimant suing for damages due to head injuries sustained after absconding from St George's Hospital, where he was taken while under police escort for psychiatric reasons. The court found the police not liable as they provided adequate information, but held the hospital at fault due to their security personnel's failure to prevent the Claimant from escaping, leading to his injuries. The core legal principles included duty of care, the relevance of the Bolam test, and the negligence of hospital security staff.
Judgment
Mr Justice Bean :
The Claimant is a protected party for the purposes of this litigation, acting through his son and litigation friend, Karl Webley. He brings a claim for damages for the very serious head injuries sustained by him as a result of the alleged negligence of the Defendants, St George’s Hospital NHS Trust (“the Trust”) and the Metropolitan Police (“the police”).
The case came before me for a trial of liability only, pursuant to the Order of Master Roberts dated 7 th December 2012.
The Claimant sustained his head injuries outside the Accident and Emergency (“A&E”) Department at St George’s just before 16:30 on 15 April 2010. He had been taken there while en route from Wimbledon police station to Springfield University Hospital, pursuant to being “sectioned” under section 2 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (“the MHA ”) as a result of a severe psychiatric disturbance – for which purpose he was, initially at least (until handed over to the Trust at A&E), under escort by the police.
Mr Webley had a pre-existing history of infrequent episodes of highly disturbed behaviour due to, as is now clear, untreated Bipolar Affective Disorder. Between these episodes he was largely symptom-free. In early April 2010 he suffered a deterioration in his mental state.
The events of 14-15 April 2010
On 14 th April 2010 the Claimant was involved in a disturbance at his flat. His state of agitation and distress were such that his daughter, Samantha Dean, called the police. What happened next is usefully summarised in part 3 of an investigation report by Acting Detective Inspector Kirstie Masters, compiled in January 2011 for the Metropolitan Police Service Directorate of Professional Standards:
“3.1 On Wednesday 14 th April 2010 at 8.45 pm police were called to Flat 2, 27 London Road, Tooting, London, SW17 after a disturbance was reported by Samantha Dean. Ms Dean stated that her father who suffers from mental health issues was having a heated argument with her younger brother Karl Webley.
3.2 PC 110VW Spells and Special Police Constable 5763VW Geary were the first officers to arrive on scene. They arrived at 8.52pm.
3.3 An LAS [London Ambulance Service] crew was initially requested when officers first attended the scene. However, there were no free units able to attend London Road at the time.
3.4 Upon arrival PC Spells and SPC Geary were met by Karl Webley who explained that his father had recently been released from Springfield University Hospital