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Other Work-Related Manslaughter Cases - ongoing


Name of Deceased Date of Death Trial Date Crown Court Defendant Position
Frederick Jackson April 2008 Jun 2009 Truro Crown Court Jonathan Mingo  
Philip Hodge  
Reece French 14 Sep 2007 21 Apr 2009

Plymouth Crown Court
(plea hearing)

Nigel Herring Employee, telescopic handler
Paul and Deborah Clements 21 Sep 2008 9 Feb 2009

Leeds Crown Court
(plea hearing)

Robert Oughton Coach driver
John Lote  
Gavin Williams 3 July 2006 Jun 2008 Winchester Crown Court Sgt Russell Price Provost Sergeant
Sgt Paul Blake Physical training instructor
Cpl John Edwards NCO
Alan Osborne 14 May 2007 Jun 2008 Isle of Man Brian Tomlinson Sub-foreman
Peter Weighman Sep 2002 15 Jan 2007 Carlisle Peter Fisher Psychiatrist

Death of Frederick Jackson

Two men appeared in court charged with manslaughter after the death of a Newquay hotel guest from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning.

Frederick Jackson was found dead at the Great Western Hotel in April 2008.

Jonathan Mingo, 35, and Philip Hodge, 47, both from St Austell, Cornwall, also faced health and safety offences. The pair were bailed by Liskeard Magistrates to appear at Truro Crown Court in June 2009.

Hodge and Mingo both denied manslaughter as well as the health and safety when they appeared at Truro Crown Court.

Hodge and Mingo are alleged to have breached their duty of care by: Designing, installing and commissioning a gas fired boiler and flue assembly which could not run efficiently; By failing to monitor adequately, or at all, the creation of carbon monoxide in and around the boiler and flue assembly, and by failing to ensure adequately, or at all, that the carbon monoxide created by the boiler's combustion did not enter the hotel.

Both also pleaded not guilty to a charge alleging that between December 1, 2005 and December 25, 2005, they failed to discharge their duty under the Gas Safety Regulations to install the boiler in such a way that it could not be used without constituting a danger to any person.

Hodge denied that between December 20, 2005 and April 21, 2008, having worked on the boiler, he failed to immediately examine the effectiveness of the flue.

Mingo denied that between December 1 and 25, 2005, being an employee, he failed to take reasonable care for the safety of other persons who might be affected by his acts or omissions at work by failing to ensure the boiler could not be used without constituting a danger to any person.

The defendants were not employees of the Great Western Hotel.

3 Jun 2009 This is Cornwall Boiler workmen plead not guilty to manslaughter

5 Dec 2008

This is Plymouth

Man in court over Reece's death
6 Sep 2008 This is Plymouth CPS considers evidence over worker's death

Death of Reece French

Reece died at the East End Community Village Enterprise Centre in Cattedown while working for construction company Kier Western on the site. Reports at the time indicated Reece died instantly when he was struck on the head by a small skip full of bricks in an incident involving a telescopic handler.

In December 2008 Nigel Herring, aged 34, from the Southway area of Plymouth appeared in court charged with Reece's manslaughter. Police said that Herring was an employee of Kier Western and was employed in the capacity of telescopic handler driver at the time of the incident.

On 22 April 2009 Nigel Herring denied the charge at a hearing at Plymouth Crown Court, and was due to face trial at the same court on November 17.

Herring was granted continuing unconditional bail by Judge Francis Gilbert QC, who also agreed that the jury should be allowed to spend up to half a day on a construction site to see Manitou machinery being operated.

The trial will be conducted by a visiting High Court judge.

For further details of this case please click here.

22 Apr 2009 This is Plymouth Construction worker denies manslaughter of colleague

5 Dec 2008

This is Plymouth

Man in court over Reece's death
6 Sep 2008 This is Plymouth CPS considers evidence over worker's death

Death of Paul and Deborah Clements

Robert Oughton and John Lote appeared at Leeds Crown Court on 9 February 2009 to face charges of manslaughter, following the fatal crash at the foot of Staxton Hill on September 21 2008 which claimed the lives of Paul and Deborah Clements, of Bear Tree Road, Rawmarsh, and orphaned their 16-year old son, Cameron.

The crash involved a collision between a coach full of youngsters from a marching band, that had been travelling down the B1249, Staxton Hill, and the Clements' grey VW Passat which was on its way to Scarborough along the A66.

Oughton, who was the driver of the Daf Bova coach, also faces a charge of death by dangerous driving.

Pleas are still to be entered by Oughton and Lote. Both men are from Burntwood, in Staffordshire.

The case was subsequently adjourned until May 29 for pleas and a case management hearing.

11 Feb 2009

South Yorks Times

Two men face court over double death road crash

Death of Gavin Williams

In June 2008 Provost Sergeant Russell Price, Sergeant Paul Blake and Corporal John Edwards appeared at Winchester Crown Court charged with Gavin's manslaughter.

The prosecution follows the decision of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in July 2007 to advise Wiltshire Police to bring charges against the three.

Stephen O'Doherty, CPS reviewing lawyer said, 'Private Williams, a soldier with the 2nd Battalion Royal Welsh, was to be charged and would have faced sanctions and an enquiry into a series of alleged disciplinary breaches he had committed. However, Sergeant Price, Sergeant Blake and Corporal Edwards chose to subject him to an intense period of physical activity amounting to unlawful punishment, on an extremely hot day. Tragically, Private Williams collapsed and despite hospital treatment for overheating, died the same day.'

In July 2008 the three defendants were found not guilty by a jury at Winchester Crown Court.

After the acquittal, trial judge Mr Justice Royce attacked the Army for allowing beasting to take place.

In his summing up he had asked the jury to consider whether the defendants had been 'hung out to dry' while their commander was not prosecuted.

Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the decision on who should stand trial was a matter for the Crown Prosecution Service not the Army.

The Royal Military Police would now investigate the death to see whether there were any breaches of military law.

Outside court, Gavin's mother Debra said she was 'devastated' with the verdicts and would 'continue fighting for justice'.

Supt Steve Hedley, from Wiltshire Police, said they had 'left no stone unturned' in an effort to establish the full circumstances.

For further details of this case please click here.

30 May 2006

The Times

Soldier Gavin Williams 'died after "beasting" punishment', court told
25 July 2007 CPS CPS decision on the death of Private Gavin Williams
31 July 2008 Salisbury Journal 'Beasting' soldiers cleared of manslaughter
12 August 2008 BBC News Army 'does not tolerate beasting'

Death of Alan Osborne

A Department of Transport (DoT) manual worker, sub-foreman Brian Tomlinson, was charged with manslaughter in May 2008 on the eve of the Isle of Man TT2008 - in connection with an incident during the preparations for 2007's TT motorcycle races.

The charge relates to the death of visiting biker Alan Osborne who was killed when his motorcycle was involved in a head-on crash near roadworks at the Veranda on the Mountain Course on May 14 2007.

Police confirmed that Mr Tomlinson had been bailed to appear in court on June 24 charged with manslaughter by gross negligence.

The news came just days after the Whitley Council employees' side was given reassurances over public liability insurance and indemnity for DoT manual workers doing preparatory work for the races which falls outside their normal duties.

After the announcement of charges, the Unite union was seeking urgent talks with Department of Transport management.

Mick Hewer, Unite's regional industrial organiser, said, 'The DoT should now take immediate steps to withdraw its workforce from carrying out any work associated with the preparation and ongoing maintenance associated with motor sport carried out on the Island.

'If the DoT is unwilling to take this action then the union will have to consult its members with a view to taking industrial action whereby they would refuse to carry out duties outside of their normal core responsibilities which put their health and safety at risk.'

He said he was astonished at the timing of the charge, coming just hours before the start of TT2008.

Whitley Council employees' side has called for a requisition meeting to discuss what its secretary Bernard Moffatt described as the 'alarming implications for rank and file employees'.

Mr Moffatt said, 'We believe this grave development raises a huge question mark over the assurances that we have received on this issue.'

He insisted that the Whitley Council employee's side knew nothing about a criminal charge being pending when it pressed for reassurances from the DoT. 'This has come like a bolt out of the blue,' he said.

And Mr Moffatt has now called for Chief Constable Mike Langdon to step down as chief marshal for the TT.

He said: 'The great paradox is that the person whose name appears at the top of the charge sheet is the chief marshal, Mr Langdon. He needs to resign that post with immediate effect.'

DoT chief executive Ian Thompson said, 'Whilst legal proceedings are ongoing, the department cannot comment on specific issues relating to the case.

'However, the department has offered both welfare and legal support to the member of staff since the incident occurred, and will continue to do so over the coming months until the issue is resolved.'

23 May 2008

Isle of Man Today

DoT responds to manslaughter charge against worker

23 May 2008

Isle of Man Today DoT worker charged with manslaughter over TT preparations

Deaths of Christina Toner, Yi Di Lin and John Carruthers

Passengers Christina and Yi died in a coach near Heathrow Airport in January 2007 while John, another passenger, died in hospital on 1 July.

A National Express coach driver has denied causing the deaths of the three passengers by dangerous driving. Philip Rooney, from Lanarkshire, was driving the London-to-Aberdeen service when it overturned on the M4/M25 slip road.

Mr Rooney pleaded not guilty to three counts when he appeared at Reading Magistrates' Court in January 2008.

He was bailed to appear at Oxford Crown Court on 8 September ahead of a trial on 27 October 2008.

In November 2008 Rooney was found guilty of the charges and was jailed for five years.

Rooney had driven coaches for nearly 15 years and the court heard he had seven previous driving offences on his record from 1997 to 2005.

27 Nov 2008 The Herald Five years in jail for bus driver after fatal accident
29 Jan 2008 BBC Driver denies coach death charges

Death of Peter Weighman

In January 2007 at Carlisle Crown Court, Peter Fisher, a former West Cumberland Hospital psychiatrist, faced trial for the alleged manslaughter of a patient Peter Weighman.

Mr Fisher previously entered a not guilty plea at Carlisle Crown Court.

Whitehaven detectives have spent several months in New Zealand gathering background information for the case.

The prosecution alleged manslaughter through negligence.

In February 2007 at Carlisle Crown Court Mr Fisher was cleared of manslaughter.

6 Feb 2007 BBC News Doctor not guilty of drug death
24 Oct 2006 Times and Star Manslaughter trial date set

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Page last updated on June 22, 2009