Man who died in police custody was a ‘sweet boy’, mother tells Exeter inquest

Thomas Orchard, who died after officers restrained him with a belt, had schizophrenia but was doing well before death, hearing told

The mother of a man who died after being restrained in police custody has told his inquest that he was a troubled, sensitive soul who had struggled with mental health issues but was doing “brilliantly” just before his death.

An inquest jury in Exeter heard that church caretaker Thomas Orchard, 32, collapsed after police placed a heavy fabric belt around his head following his arrest in the city centre. The “emergency response belt” (ERB), which was designed as a limb restraint, was used as a “spit and bite hood” on him.

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