Marc Willems QC and Philip Simms, instructed as counsel to the inquest by HM’s Senior Coroner for Manchester Mr Nigel Meadows, have recently concluded the inquest into the death of Jack Anderson Barnes. Mr Barnes was pursued from Manchester Victoria Station by contractors working for the Manchester Metrolink to Spinningfields where he was restrained for approximately ten minutes before suffering a cardiac arrest. He later died in hospital.

The inquest was initially listed in March 2020 with a jury but was aborted part-heard due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was restarted with Mr Meadows sitting without a jury in January 2021 and resulted in a conclusion of unlawful killing.

Mr Willems and Mr Simms assisted with preparations for the inquest, advised the Coroner on the law, and examined witnesses on the Coroner’s behalf.

The inquest heard from experts in forensic pathology, cardiology, toxicology, and restraint.

The Coroner had to consider the applicability of the right to life pursuant to Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, unlawful act manslaughter, joint enterprise, the legality of arrests without a warrant by persons other than police officers, and the privilege against self-incrimination. Following requests for disclosure from the media, the Coroner also had to consider the interplay of the Article 8 right to privacy with the Article 10 right of freedom of expression.

The Coroner’s determinations, findings, and conclusions can be found here and his determination on disclosure to the media can be found here.

See below links to coverage of the case in the press:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-56203332

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/young-dad-who-said-i-19920913

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