Prisoner had skull injury

Press, 17 June 1986, Page 8

Prisoner had skull injury

PA -Auckland A man with a fractured skull who died in a Henderson police cell on Saturday was believed to be sleeping off a drinking bout, the police said last evening. The man was Mr Barney Phillips, aged 61, a sickness beneficiary, of New Lynn. Mr Phillips was arrested for drunkenness about midnight on Friday. He was put in a cell for detoxification and was found dead at 1 p.m. on Saturday. A post-mortem examination yesterday revealed that he died of a fractured skull.

The Henderson police have begun inquiries to discover how he suffered the injury and whether station staff followed the correct detoxification procedures. The western divisional commander, Chief Inspector Ross Dallow, said Mr Phillips had the fractured skull before he was arrested.

“The injury was not known to us. He was visited regularly in the cells and it was assumed he was badly affected by alcohol,” he said.

Mr Phillips was arrested after a caller saw him wandering round New Lynn streets. He was found sitting outside a New Lynn house and it is not known when he be-

came unconscious. Findings of the police inquiries will go to the Auckland Coroner, who will conduct an inquest into the death. Mr Dallow said the police had “a whole range of provisions and procedures” for dealing with intoxicated people in custody. These could include determining whether medical help was needed, how often a prisoner was visited, and even the way prisoners were placed in bed.