M9 police officer 'tortured' by failure to log fatal crash call

Lamara Bell and her partner John Yuill were found inside their car after it crashed down an embankment off the M9 in July 2015

A police officer has told a fatal accident inquiry (FAI) he is "tortured" by his failure to log a call about a deadly crash on the M9.

John Yuill, 28, and his partner Lamara Bell, 25, died after their car left the motorway near Stirling in 2015.

Retired sergeant Brian Henry put the mistake down to human error and apologised to the families.

The inquiry also heard he had been inadequately trained on Police Scotland's call handling system.

Mr Henry said: "The incident lives with me every day and will always do so."

• 'The worst call you could imagine': M9 crash officer

• Farmer tells how M9 crash victim Lamara Bell pleaded for help

• M9 crash victim 'was confused and in pain' after three days in car

• Previous warning of staff shortages

The FAI had previously heard that he wrote down details of the incident in his notebook but failed to log it on the police IT system during his overtime shift.

As a result no action was taken by officers until three days later.

Mr Yuill was found to be dead when the car was eventually discovered and Ms Bell died later in hospital.

Giving evidence, Mr Henry was taken through the transcript of the initial call with farmer John Wilson.

The inquiry has previously heard that Mr Wilson called Police Scotland after spotting the Renault Clio on the morning of 5 July.

Mr Henry asked Mr Wilson if there was anyone with the car and said he replied: "No, no."

Asked what he would have taken that to mean, Mr Henry told the FAI: "I was probably of the opinion the vehicle had just been abandoned."

Mr Henry then asked if the crash had just happened but Mr Wilson answered: "I hopefully think not."

Police near the scene of the 2015 crash

In summary, Mr Henry said: "It looked like it had happened previously. I will check back our jobs and see if anything has been reported. If not we'll get it checked back anyway."

He told the inquiry he did recall searching for previous police incidents.

Mr Henry added: "I want to be clear, without some kind of interruption or distraction there is no way I would have taken the call from Mr Wilson and done nothing.

"There is no way in this world I would have deliberately ignored the call."

In a statement earlier Mr Henry - who retired in 2018 after 30 years of service - told the inquiry he felt "dreadful" for the families.

He added: "I know the grief and loss that the families will feel is something which will never leave them.

"I want them to know that having given my life to protect and serve policing, it's devastating to me that I have any involvement in the events of that day."

The FAI is being held at Falkirk Sheriff Court

Mr Henry also said he found it hard to come to terms with the role he played in the crash response at the newly reorganised force call centre at Bilston Glen, Midlothian.

He added: "To this day I still don't know with any certainty what happened. It has been eating me up ever since."

Turning to the families, the statement continued: "I just want them to know how very sorry I am for their loss and the years of pain which have been caused.

"My biggest hope is that this process can provide certainty for them and some degree of closure."

'I still torture myself'

Mr Henry recorded the initial call in his notebook but, at the time, he wasn't logged on the central system.

He said: "To be honest, I still torture myself trying to work out what actually happened.

"As a police officer my approach was always proactive, always to go the extra mile.

"Which is why explaining this is so hard and why I go over it again and again."

The inquiry separately heard he had been inadequately trained by Police Scotland prior to being asked to answer calls from the public.

The statement concluded: "As a police officer I have saved lives, it was my duty to protect life and guard property.

"That's why being involved in this has been so traumatic.

"But what really matters is that the family get the explanation from everyone involved in this about what happened and how we can be certain it never happens again.

"It would help me to know that they were going to get the answers they seek."

Sir Iain Livingstone led Police Scotland from 2018 until his retirement in August

According to a statement shown to the inquiry last week, Mr Henry was phoned by Laura Henderson, a manager at the Bilston Glen police call centre on 8 July 2015.

He was asked about a call he had answered three days earlier while working an overtime shift answering 101 calls.

Elsewhere in the statement he said: "It was the worst call you can imagine as a police officer. A call you don't want to receive."

Ms Henderson told the FAI she recalled Mr Henry said he felt physically sick.

In September 2021 Police Scotland admitted failures in its system contributed to the death of Ms Bell.

The then Chief Constable Iain Livingstone apologised "unreservedly" on behalf of policing in Scotland.

The force later agreed to pay Ms Bell's family more than £1m in compensation.

The inquiry, before Sheriff James Williamson, continues.