Police dismiss corruption claims over patient deaths

A police force that investigated the deaths of patients at a scandal-hit hospital has formally dismissed corruption complaints from victims' families.

At least 456 patients died after being given powerful painkillers inappropriately at Gosport War Memorial Hospital between 1989 and 2000, an inquiry previously found.

The families accused 16 police officers of corruption and dishonesty over the investigations, which did not result in charges.

However, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary said the officers' actions were "acceptable".

The quality of the police force's three investigations from 1998 to 2010 was "consistently poor", an independent panel previously said.

However, in a letter to families' representative David Wilson, the force's head of complaints Ch Insp Matt Reeves dismissed all 72 of their complaints.

The letter, dated 10 October 2024, said: "I have concluded that the service provided by the police was acceptable."

He also rejected the families' call for misconduct proceedings against officers, saying the force had "drawn a line" in 2018.

An accompanying police letter admitted the first investigation, led by Det Con Richard Maddison in 1998, was "not thorough".

It said he may have been "biased" against treating the deaths as crimes.

However, it said the failings did not influence senior officers or the decision not to bring charges.

Mr Wilson said: "Bearing in mind that over 100 patients were killed after Det Con Maddison failed to complete a thorough investigation... any relative of those 100 patients would now appear to have some justification in asserting that Hampshire Constabulary contributed to the cause of death of those patients."

The Gosport Independent Panel, led by Bishop James Jones, concluded in 2018 that as many as 650 patients probably died, amid a culture of "disregard for human life".

Concerns were formally raised by nurses in 1991 about the hospital's use of diamorphine and syringe drivers, the panel reported.

Hampshire police initially dismissed the families' complaints in 2020 but the force was ordered to hold a new investigation by regulators.

In a statement, the force said: "Following a Right to Review request, the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) made a direction that we should provide a more detailed rationale to the families in relation to our conclusions about the complaints made.

"Our Professional Standards Department has now completed that investigative review of the available documentation and decisions made."

The statement added: "The report into the specific complaints found no evidence or indication of any misconduct or criminal offences and the recommendation remains that no further action is required in relation to the complaints.

"However, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary has previously accepted mistakes were made during the police investigations and has apologised to the families for this."

A new police investigation, codenamed Operation Magenta, was opened by Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate in 2019.

No charges have so far been brought, although Dr Jane Barton, who oversaw prescribing on the wards, was found guilty by a tribunal of serious professional misconduct in 2010.

Mr Wilson, whose aunt Dulcie Middleton was one of the patients who died, said he would appeal to the IOPC against the latest police findings.

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