Archie Battersbee's inquest opened in Essex, a week after his death in hospital
A coroner has described the death of Archie Battersbee, the 12-year-old who died last week after a lengthy court battle over his life-support care, as "a tragedy" as he opened an inquest.
Archie died on Saturday shortly after life-sustaining ventilation and medication was withdrawn from him at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London.
At an inquest opening in Essex on Friday, senior coroner Lincoln Brookes scheduled a full hearing for 7 February.
He said: "I also want to take the opportunity to say that Archie's death is a tragedy to so many people, especially his family, on a personal level. I would like to extend my deepest condolences [to Archie's family] on behalf of myself and my officers."
Archie had been in a coma since 7 April after being found unconscious at home in Southend, Essex.
His family had fought through the courts for several months for doctors to give him more time, but judges agreed with medics that he was brain-stem dead and decided that it was in his best interests for treatment to end.
Multiple appeals from the family to the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, UN and European Court of Human Rights failed.
'Catastrophic brain injury'
The inquest heard Archie died from a "catastrophic" brain injury he sustained after being found unresponsive at home.
Coroner's officer Paul Donaghy: "Paramedics attended and they reported a Glasgow Coma Scale of only three and confirmed a cardiac arrest. CPR continued and Archie was transported to Southend Hospital.
"Archie was thereafter transferred to the Royal London Hospital and Great Ormond Street Hospital who were both in agreement that surgical intervention would not help Archie. He was reviewed by the paediatric neurology team during his admission.
"Second opinions were also provided by multiple professionals from the Royal London, Queen's and Great Ormond Street Hospitals who agreed that Archie had suffered severe irreversible brain injury. The High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court were involved in applications to determine the direction of care and the best interests of Archie."
He added: "With the authority of final court order, life-sustaining treatment was withdrawn on 6 August 2022, in a side room on the intensive care unit and Archie died surrounded by his family and friends."
He said that Archie's death was confirmed by a hospital consultant.
A provisional cause of death was identified as catastrophic hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, secondary to strangulation.
After Archie's death, his mother Hollie Dance said that she was the "proudest mum in the world".
The family have also called for a full inquiry, and said they would be calling for change in the law after feeling that their wishes were not listened to as decisions were made over Archie's care.
Archie Battersbee timeline
Archie Battersbee - The story of a four-month court battle
Archie Battersbee - The story of a four-month court battle
7 April - Hollie Dance finds Archie unconscious in their home in Southend, Essex, with a ligature over his head. She believes he was taking part in an online challenge.
8 April - Archie is moved to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London.
26 April - Barts Health Trust, which runs the Royal London Hospital, starts High Court proceedings to run brain stem tests. Hollie Dance urges judge Mrs Justice Arbuthnot to not approve the brain stem tests to "give him [Archie] time to fight back".
13 May - Mrs Justice Arbuthnot rules brain stem tests should be carried out
16 May -Two specialists at Royal London Hospital try to conduct brain stem tests but are unable to do so as Archie fails to respond to peripheral nerve stimulation test.
25 May - A hearing is held to decide if further MRI scans should be conducted. Ms Dance and Paul Battersbee, Archie's father, do not consent as they fear moving Archie will cause him harm.
27 May - Court approves that further MRI scans should be conducted.
31 May - MRI scans conducted.
6-8 June - Court hearing held to decide if Archie's life support treatment should continue. Specialists say it is highly likely that Archie is "brain stem dead", and that tests conducted showed no discernible brain activity, revealing "significant areas of tissue necrosis". A doctor for the family tells the court he knows of cases where people diagnosed as being dead by "neurological criteria" have been proven to be alive.
13 June 2022 - Mrs Justice Arbuthnot rules that Archie is dead based on MRI scan results. "I find that Archie died at noon on Monday 31 May 2022, which was shortly after the MRI scans taken that day," she rules. Archie's family immediately indicate they will apply for permission to appeal the decision.
20 June - The family mount an appeal to the same judge, arguing that evidence had not shown “beyond reasonable doubt” that the youngster was dead. Mrs Justice Arbuthnot agrees that the family have a "compelling" case and the matter is sent to the Court of Appeal.
29 June - Three Court of Appeal judges uphold the family's appeal, and order a fresh hearing to take place at the High Court in front of a different judge.
11 July - The new hearing begins in the High Court before Mr Justice Hayden. Doctors treating Archie at Royal London Hospital argue that continuing the treatment will only "delay the inevitable".
15 July - Mr Justice Hayden concludes that doctors can lawfully stop providing life-support treatment, calling the medical evidence "compelling and unanimous". He adds: "There are unfortunately no treatments possible to reverse the damage that has been caused to Archie's brain." Once again, Archie's family say they will appeal the decision.
25 July - Three Court of Appeal judges hear the appeal, but back Mr Justice Hayden's ruling that treatment can end as it is in Archie's best interests. A stay is put in place for Archie's treatment to continue until 2pm on 27 July.
27 July - As the stay expires, Archie's family are given a further 24 hours to appeal to European Court of Human Rights. However, they say that court has a "track record" of rejecting cases such as Archie's and instead want to go to the United Nations. They apply to the Supreme Court to be allowed to appeal to the UN.
28 July - Supreme Court judges refuse to intervene, and support the Court of Appeal ruling that Royal London Hospital can withdraw life support treatment lawfully.
29 July - Archie's family make an application to the UN, under a protocol which allows individuals and families to make complaints about violation of disabled people's rights).
30 July - The UN issues the UK government's legal department with a request so that it has time to consider Archie's case.
31 July - The UK government asks the High Court to delay the withdrawal of treatment so that the UN has time to consider the case.
1 August - A last-minute hearing organised at the request of the health secretary. Lawyers representing Archie's parents say unless the withdrawal of life support treatment is postponed, the court would be "complicit" in "flagrant breach of international law". But Court of Appeal judges refuses to postpone the withdrawal of life-support, extending it only until midday on Tuesday, 2 August. The most senior family judge in the country says the UN convention is an "unconventional international treaty and is not part of UK law", and that it continues to be in Archie's best interests to stop treatment.
2 August - Archie’s parents are refused permission to appeal against the latest ruling at the Supreme Court. Ms Dance says Barts Health NHS Trust will begin to withdraw Archie’s life support on August 3 at 11am unless the family have submitted an application to the European Court of Human Rights by 9am that day. The trust will not begin removing life-support until all legal issues have been resolved.
3 August - The European Court of Human Rights refuses the last-ditch application. Archie’s family say they intend to ask the High Court to allow the schoolboy to be moved to a hospice.
4 August - Nearly four months after Archie suffered traumatic head injuries, his parents formally lodge High Court proceedings over the move to hospice care – something the hospital opposes. Archie’s care continues. A hearing takes place at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, lasting late into the evening.
5 August - Mrs Justice Theis rules it is not in Archie’s best interests to be moved to a hospice. The High Court judge refuses the family permission to appeal against her ruling, granting a stay on the withdrawal of Archie’s treatment until 2pm on Friday to allow them to go directly to the Court of Appeal.
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