Trial collapses of policemen accused over custody death

The trial of five police officers accused of the manslaughter of a black former paratrooper in their custody was halted yesterday when the judge threw out all charges.

Christopher Alder, 37, died face down in the custody suite at Queen's Gardens police station in Hull with his trousers and underpants around his knees. An inquest jury ruled two years ago that he was unlawfully killed.

But as the defence prepared to open its case, three months into the trial at Teesside Crown Court, Mr Justice Roderick Evans instructed the jury to acquit constables Nigel Dawson, 39, Neil Blakey, 42, Mark Ellerington, 36, and Matthew Barr, 38, and their custody sergeant, John Dunn, 40, of manslaughter. "There was conflicting medical evidence about why Mr Alder had become unconscious and about what had killed him," Mr Justice Evans said.

Separate charges of misconduct in public office were also thrown out because, in the judge's opinion, there was no evidence of "recklessness", the criminal test required.

"If the test ... was negligence there would undoubtedly be a case to answer, but negligence is not the test," he told the jury.

"It is undoubtedly true the detectives did not give Mr Alder the basic first aid he needed or take any steps to administer first aid until it was too late. There is no doubt they collectively and individually got it wrong and badly so," the judge said during a one-hour judgment on the defence's lengthy submissions that the charges be dropped.

The verdict was a bitter blow to Mr Alder's family and ended a four-year fight for criminal convictions that began with the seven-week inquest – the longest over a death in police custody. Despite the inquest verdict and the officers' failure to have it overturned at the High Court, the Crown Prosecution Service initially insisted that manslaughter charges would not be brought. Only after the family's lawyers commissioned fresh medical reports did the situation change.

The family's solicitor, Ruth Bundey, called yesterday for a public inquiry into the case, similar to that carried out after the death of the black teenager Stephen Lawrence.

Ms Bundey called for an investigation into "missed opportunities ... evidence not collated, evidence destroyed, evidence not followed up". "That's why I call this a limping prosecution," she said.

Mr Alder's sister, Janet Alder, said she might bring a civil suit against the officers on behalf of Mr Alder's two sons, now aged 16 and 18. "To me, this gives the police licence to act as they wish and next time it could someone else's brother or another tragic victim," said Ms Alder.

Mr Alder, who left the Parachute Regiment in 1983 after being decorated for services in Northern Ireland, had been treated at Hull Royal Infirmary after an altercation outside a nightclub on the night of his death, 1 April 1998. He was arrested for a breach of the peace when he refused to leave the hospital grounds, and was taken to the police station in a patrol van.

He was able to walk up the two steps into the cage of the van and say "See you later" to a hospital security guard, but slumped into unconsciousness during the five-minute journey to the police station.

Forensic examination revealed signs of a heavy smear of blood in the back of the van, although medical evidence disproved allegations that the officers assaulted him.

CCTV footage from the custody suite – a central part of the prosecution case – showed the five experienced officers' attitudes as Mr Alder, a fitness fanatic, took his last breaths. They were convinced he was play-acting or "doing the dying swan", as one of them said.

At the end of the case yesterday, Christopher Enzor, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service's case work directorate in York, said establishing a criminal level of proof was "always going to be difficult". He added: "The key problem in the manslaughter case was proving beyond reasonable doubt ... that the actions and omissions of the five police officers contributed more than minimally to the tragic death of Mr Alder."

Stuart Downes, chairman of the the Humberside Police Federation, said he had applied to have the five officers reinstated to the force.

Mr Alder was the seventh person to have been killed unlawfully in police custody in 10 years. Six have been black and one Irish.