Lewis Skelton: Police legal bid against shooting inquest dismissed

Lewis Skelton died in hospital after being Tasered and shot in November 2016

A police officer who fatally shot a man with mental health issues in Hull has lost his legal challenge against an inquest verdict of unlawful killing.

Lewis Skelton, 31, was carrying an axe in the city centre on 29 November 2016 and was shot twice after he failed to respond to police instructions to stop.

Two High Court judges have decided they had no grounds "to interfere with the conclusion" of the inquest jury.

The officer will not face disciplinary action, Humberside Police maintains.

Mr Skelton's family said they hoped the Humberside Police officer who fired the fatal shots, identified only as B50, would "finally accept the findings".

"It is time for him and the chief constable to finally accept what happened to Lewis was wrong," they said.

"Hopefully today marks the end of all this and allows us as a family to focus on remembering Lewis as the person we knew and loved.

"We've never been allowed to focus on grieving for our loss."

Lewis Skelton's family, left to right: sisters Laura and Tia Skelton, mother Helen and sister Hayley Skelton

A jury reached a decision of unlawful killing in October 2021 after hearing Mr Skelton, who had a long history of mental illness including periods of psychosis, had not threatened anyone but was Tasered four times before he was fatally shot.

Officer B50 had challenged the coroner's conduct of the hearing, claiming his summing-up of the case was not clear and properly directed, but was so deficient it rendered the jury's conclusion unsafe.

He claimed there was insufficient evidence for a jury to reach a verdict of unlawful killing.

However, Lord Justice Stuart-Smith and Mr Justice Fordham said the coroner's summary of the case did not give "rise to a risk of an unsafe verdict" despite it being lengthy and needing "further pruning".

"It is clear that the coroner had made efforts to present the evidence coherently, albeit that he did so witness by witness," they said.

Concluding their judgement, the judges said: "We have stood back and considered whether, either singly or cumulatively, there is any proper basis for us to interfere with the conclusion of the jury.

"We are unable to identify any such basis."

Lewis Skelton's family said they had "never been allowed to focus on grieving for our loss"

Mr Skelton's mother, Helen Skelton, and his sisters Tia, Hayley and Laura, blamed police for "a misleading narrative", which had wrongly portrayed him in the media as "a threat to members of the public" on the day of the shooting.

"At a time when trust in the police is at an all-time low, when they get things wrong, they should say so," they said.

In a statement, Paul Anderson, deputy chief constable of Humberside Police, said: "Police officers often have to act quickly in challenging situations where there is extreme pressure and make split second decisions in a bid to protect the public from any harm."

'Tragic and difficult'

He echoed previous statements saying the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) found the officer had "neither committed a criminal offence or behaved in a manner which would justify disciplinary proceedings".

"This was a tragic and difficult incident and the death of any person in such circumstances is an outcome that no-one would have wished," he said.

"Our thoughts and condolences remain with Lewis' family and friends."

The family's solicitor, Neil Hudgell, said he was advising them on the "next steps".

"The fact that there were no misconduct proceedings, or a referral to the CPS for potential criminal conduct, following the initial IOPC investigation is a significant consideration, both for the family and for the wider public interest in accountability in respect of the use of lethal force by police officers."

Lewis Skelton had a long history of mental illness including periods of psychosis