Mother of Beccles man Adam Coates tells inquest police acted too slowly to stop son taking his own life
A grieving mother told an inquest that she believed police were 'having a jolly' outside her son's home while he was inside taking his life.
War veteran Adam Coates, 32, was found hanged at his home in Peddars Lane, Beccles, on April 25 last year, around 30 minutes after police first arrived at his house to carry out a welfare check.
Suffolk Coroner's Court in Ipswich heard on Wednesday that his mother, Dawn Davies, believed that had police entered the property sooner, her son's life could have been saved.
"I don't think he was contemplating suicide. I believe he would have heard police trying to get in the house and my belief is he thought he would be found," said Ms Davies, who described her son as 'fun-loving and friendly'.
After police body camera footage was played to the court, which showed officers carrying out checks and interviewing neighbours, she added: "In the video footage, it was the neighbours that showed more concern than the officers did and more urgency.
"It was like there was some kind of jolly going on outside. I'm a neonatal nurse and I deal with emergencies. Yes, there is calmness but there's urgency and I'm sorry but there was no urgency that day."
The inquest, led by assistant coroner Christopher Long, heard that Mr Coates' wife Laura, from whom he had recently separated, called police at around 5.40pm after he sent her and their three children WhatsApp messages and a voice message in which he said goodbye.
Pc Joseph Mackay was first on the scene at 5.55pm and immediately began knocking on the door and speaking to neighbours.
He told the inquest that at 6.04pm he requested a method of entry kit - specialist equipment used by trained officers to break safely into buildings - to be transported to Beccles from Halesworth.
"It's a specially trained role and it's a specially trained officer that uses it," he said.
"That's to stop any harm coming to anyone using the kit or anyone else at the scene. It's a dangerous kit to use."
He added that police officers follow a decision-making model, which requires them to carry out a number of checks before entering someone's home.
The inquest heard that Pc Mackay was then joined by Pc Lee Flint and that both carried out further checks before making a decision to enter the property.
Pc Flint told the inquest: "With any concern for welfare decision making, there's a process we have to go by. There's always some sort of discrepancy between what's broadcast to us on the radio and what we actually find on arrival."
He said that he and Pc Mackay made a final decision to enter the house after he climbed a ladder and heard Mr Coates' phone - which they were told he never left home without - ringing inside an upstairs bedroom.
"That to me was the going point and I felt that grounds had been met to enter the house," said Pc Flint.
"I tried using a crowbar to break into the windows but I'm not trained in method of entry.
"Through experience, I recalled that the bottom panels of PVC doors are a weak point in the door and I thought that was our best option.
"I was happy that we had to ascertain if someone was in there."
Pc Mackay added: "To me, it was at that point we had exhausted all options and Pc Flint had heard his phone ringing and that's when I thought Mr Coates must be in the back bedroom."
But Ms Davies and Mrs Coates asked the court why police hadn't taken into account Mr Coates' two previous attempts to take his own life in 2018 and in March 2020 when making their decisions.
"Laura had said there was a danger and that he'd attempted suicide before," said Mrs Davies.
"And when the policeman got there he said he spoke to Gemma, Adam's neighbour, who said she thought his life was in danger.
"So I think they would have been quite aware that there would have been quite a severe danger going on there."
The inquest heard that Mark Thomas Merry, a report editor at Suffolk Police's professional standards department, looked into the conduct of officers at Mr Coates' house on the day of his death.
He found that there was no 'causational link' between the officers' decisions or behaviour and Mr Coates' death.
"Both officers made reference to the national decision-making model and for some years that has been a key part of training that we have received from day one," said Mr Merry.
Recording Mr Coates' cause of death as suicide, Mr Long said he would not make a Prevention of Future Deaths report in regards to the officers' decisions.
"At this stage, I can't say that there is a concern which is ongoing that would give a risk to future deaths," he said.
Paying tribute to her husband, Mrs Coates said: "The children miss and talk about him every day, especially Elizabeth his googly bear.
"William and Edward have been missing their dad so much. I miss him. I miss the good times we shared as a family. I love you so much Adam, you'll always be in our hearts."
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