07 Feb Jury concludes that police officers inappropriately left Jack Booth alone before he ended his life
The inquest into the death of Jack Booth concluded yesterday, with the jury finding that police officers took an inappropriate decision to leave Jack alone – after they had heard that he wanted to take his own life – and had said: “I wanna be one of them f*****g stars up in the sky, I don’t wanna be here.”
Jack, a 23-year-old aspiring electrician, died by self-inflicted means in November 2021, shortly after contact with police officers.
PC Clark and PC Atkinson (who has since left the force) attended Hoborne Cotswold Holiday Park shortly before 11pm on 4 November 2021 further to reports of an altercation.
PC Clark spoke to a member of the public who reported that they were concerned about Jack, as he had disclosed that he wanted to end his life, that Jack had lost a friend to suicide recently, and that Jack had specifically told him how he intended to end his life.
While PC Clark was speaking to the member of the public, PC Atkinson spoke with Jack. He was visibly distressed, disclosed a history of self-harm, depression and anxiety, said that he would probably self-harm later that evening, and made comments such as “I really don’t wanna be here anymore.”
PC Clark came upon the scene and said to Jack “I wanna talk to you but you’re making a massive meal out of this.” During his conversation with both officers, Jack told them, “I wanna be one of them f*****g stars up in the sky, I don’t wanna be here.”
Around only 70 seconds into his conversation with Jack, PC Clark decided to leave Jack to go and collect their police van, having told him that he was “not f*****g following [him] halfway round this park.” PC Atkinson went with him, leaving Jack alone.
In his evidence to the inquest, PC Clark said that while speaking to Jack, he thought that Jack may require detention under s136 of the Mental Health Act, which gives officers a power to detain a person for their safety if they appear to be suffering from a mental disorder and are in immediate need of care or control. He accepted that he should have assessed the risk higher, that the way he spoke to Jack had not been appropriate, and that it would have made sense for someone to stay with Jack while the van was collected. He didn’t know why he hadn’t realised earlier that Jack should not have been left alone.
PC Atkinson stated to the inquest that, while she had concerns about Jack’s risk to himself, she didn’t express this to PC Clark and still decided to go and collect the van.
When the officers found Jack again, a mere 20 minutes later, he had taken steps to end his life. CPR was commenced, and he was pronounced dead at 00.16 on 5 November 2021.
The Jury concluded that:
The police officers took an inappropriate decision to leave Jack alone on the night in question. It is possible that this made a material contribution to his death. The police officers’ risk assessment determined that Jack was at high risk of committing suicide. Other measures could have been explored.
The hearing took place at Gloucester Coroner’s Court from 4 to 6 February 2025 before Area Coroner Roland Wooderson.
Jack’s mother, Donna Allwood, said:
“I am so relieved that the jury recognised that the police officers should not have left Jack. Despite all the warning signs, they gave him only minutes of their time. He was crying out for help and the risk should have been obvious, especially to police officers. Jack was a beautiful person. He was kind and caring, though really it is impossible to put him into words. Losing him has been unbearable. I miss him every day.”
Ruth Mellor, solicitor at Deighton Pierce Glynn, said:
“Jack’s family have had to endure a long wait since his death to have clear public acknowledgement of what has always been obvious to them: Jack should not have been left alone that night. Police officers must take responsibility for the impact that their actions – and failures – have on vulnerable people in mental health crisis”.
ENDS
Notes for editors:
- Jack Booth’s family are represented by Ruth Mellor and Emma Gregg of Deighton Pierce Glynn solicitors, and by Cian Murphy of Doughty Street Chambers. They are also supported by the charity INQUEST.
- Request for photographs and further information should be directed to bristoladmin [at] dpglaw.co.uk.
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