Douglas Oak was contained by officers of Dorset Police on a street in Bournemouth on 11th April 2017. Officers identified that he may have been suffering from Acute Behavioural Disturbance (otherwise known as ABD, or excited delirium) and called an ambulance to attend. Mr Oak suffered a cardiac arrest at the roadside and sadly died the following day in Poole Hospital.
Following a six week inquest, the jury returned a narrative conclusion, making no adverse findings in relation to the actions of Dorset Police.
The inquest received national press attention:
Mark Thomas acted for the Chief Constable of Dorset Police. He is a member of the 5 Essex Court inquest law team and regularly represents police forces, clinicians, charities and employers at inquests.