Jersey medics appeal denied over failing to adequately care for patient who died

Two Jersey medics who were found guilty of failing to adequately care for a man in the moments before he died have had their appeal denied at Jersey Royal Court.

John Sutherland, 66, and Tom Le Sauteur, 36, were found guilty of breaching health and safety laws on Wednesday 26 June 2024.

The pair were conditionally discharged and ordered to pay £500 each in court costs but appealed their sentences.

The decision to deny their appeals was reached on Wednesday 23 October.

Speaking after the decision, John Sutherland says: "Obviously I'm disappointed. There's always a fine glimmer of hope that something might have come from this but I don't think we ever expected that it was going to be overturned."

Tom Le Sauteur says that while it wasn't "the ideal scenario", he explains that Jersey appeals are hard to achieve and that the pair were "prepared" for the denial.

Sutherland told ITV News they believed it was important to attempt an appeal:

The verdict followed an eight-day trial, where jurats ruled the pair failed to carry out their duties to protect Frazer Irvine, who suffered a fatal cardiac arrest in March 2022.

Mr Irvine called 999 for himself after a suspected pill and alcohol overdose, but his condition worsened once Sutherland and Le Sauteur arrived.

At the time, the prosecution argued the pair failed to put Mr Irvine in the recovery position, recognise he was struggling to breathe, and provide adequate care during resuscitation.

The prosecution described it as a "sad, troubling case" and presiding Commissioner Sir John Saunders said that "there was no malice from the defendants".

The initial guilty verdict garnered criticism from islanders as setting a "dangerous precedent" for health providers. Hundreds gathered at St Helier's ambulance station to demonstrate against the decision.

The pair will now go through an internal process to decide whether they will remain in their positions.

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