IOPC publishes figures on deaths during or following police contact for 2023/24

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) today published its annual report on deaths during or following police contact in 2023/24.

Published for the 20th year, the statistics provide an official record setting out the number of such deaths, the circumstances in which they happen, and any underlying factors. Figures across the different categories can fluctuate each year, and any conclusions about trends need to be treated with caution.

The report shows:

• There were 24 deaths in or following police custody, an increase of one from 2022/23, and the highest figure since 2006/07:
  • Fifteen people were taken ill or were identified as being unwell in a police cell. Eleven were taken to hospital where they later died. Four people died in a police custody suite.
  • Six people were taken ill at the scene of arrest. Three people were taken to hospital, where they later died. Three people died at the scene.
  • Two men were taken ill in a police vehicle, and were taken to hospital where they died.
  • One woman died following release from police custody. Post arrest she had been taken to hospital for treatment for facial injuries and then returned to custody. She died three days after release.
• There were two fatal police shootings, compared to three the previous year.
• This year there were 32 fatalities from 29 police-related road traffic incidents (RTIs). This represents an increase of four deaths on 2022/23. Of the 32 deaths, 24 fatalities arose from 22 police pursuit-related incidents. There was one emergency response-related incident and fatality, and seven deaths related to other police traffic activity. 
• There were 68 apparent suicides following police custody, an increase of 14 on the previous year and the highest figure since 2014/15.
• The IOPC also investigated 60 other deaths following contact with the police in a wide range of circumstances, a decrease of 31 on 2022/23. Deaths are only included in this category when the IOPC has conducted an independent investigation.

Mental health: 

• mental ill health and links to drugs or alcohol were again common factors among many of those who died. 
• of the 24 people who died in or following police custody, 19 had mental health concerns with one having been detained under the Mental Health Act, and 21 had links to drugs and/or alcohol.
• just under half of those who died following other police contact were reported to be intoxicated by drugs and/or alcohol at the time of the incident, or it featured heavily in their lifestyle (29); a similar proportion of the people who died were reported to have mental health concerns (27).
• of the 68 apparent suicides, 48 people had known mental health concerns and 31 had links to drugs and/or alcohol.

 Ethnicity: 

• of the 24 deaths in or following custody, 21 of the deceased were White, one was Black, one was of Mixed ethnicity, and one was of another ethnicity,
• the two men fatally shot by police were White.
• of the 60 other deaths following police contact the IOPC decided to investigate, 44 people were White, 11 were Black, and five were Asian.
• of the 14 deaths in or following custody where there was use of force, 13 of the deceased were White and one was of Mixed ethnicity.
• of the eight other deaths following police contact which involved use of force, six of the deceased were White and two were Black.

Restraint and use of force: 

• 14 of the 24 people who died in or following police custody had some use of force against them by the police before their deaths. In one of these deaths there was also restraint by members of the public. 
• eight of the 60 other deaths following police contact which were independently investigated involved restraint or other use of force by police. Two of the eight involved Taser discharge. One of the eight cases also involved restraint by members of the public. 
• in one further case, there was use of force by police prior to a subsequent apparent suicide.
• these uses of force did not necessarily contribute to the deaths. 

Road traffic fatalities:

• of the 24 pursuit-related fatalities, 18 were the driver or passenger in the pursued vehicle and four people were drivers or passengers of an unrelated vehicle which was hit by the pursued car. The average age of those who died as either driver or passenger in a pursued or fleeing vehicle was 25.
• this year, two pursuit-related incidents resulted in two fatalities each, and there was an increase of four on the number of pursuit-related deaths from 2022/23.
• the 32 total deaths figure is just above the annual average (30) for road traffic incident fatalities recorded since these statistics were first published in 2004/05.

Other deaths following police contact: 

• 51 fatalities followed contact with the police, either directly or indirectly, after concerns were raised about someone’s welfare. 
• of the 60 deaths, 39 of the deceased were male and 21 female.
• all 13 of the concern for welfare deaths that were domestic related were of women.

Apparent suicides:  

• of the 68 apparent suicides, 31 (46%) of those who died had been arrested for an alleged sexual offence – 26 of the 31 involved alleged offences against children.