Gross misconduct hearings over Tasered man's death

Five serving and former Warwickshire Police officers face disciplinary action following a reinvestigation into the case of a man who died after officers Tasered him. Darren Cumberbatch, 32, died nine days after he was restrained by police at a hostel in Nuneaton in July 2017. An inquiry by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in 2018 found officers had not breached standards of professional behaviour - but Cumberbatch's family called for the case to be reviewed. The police watchdog has now ruled that four constables should face gross misconduct hearings, while a fifth officer will attend a misconduct meeting. Cumberbatch had symptoms of acute behavioural disturbance (ABD) at the time of the incident, which started at the hostel on Edward Street and continued to George Eliot Hospital where he eventually died of multi-organ failure. A 2019 inquest into the death found that it was drug-related - but additionally found that police restraint contributed to his death. Jurors said some of the force officers used was "excessive" and "probably avoidable", and that more could have been done to de-escalate the situation. The IOPC said after considering evidence from the inquest, i