Family of London roofer fail to persuade High Court that life-support should continue

ITV London's Carolyn Sim reports on the High Court ruling.

Relatives of a roofer who suffered a brain injury after being punched in the head in a pub garden have lost their case in the High Court meaning doctors can lawfully stop treating Andy Casey, 20, of Mitcham, south-west London.

Mr Justice MacDonald said he had concluded, with “very great sadness” Mr Casey “died on 16 July 2023 at 11.51pm”.

Specialists say Mr Casey’s brain-stem function has died and he is therefore dead. Mr Justice MacDonald, who considered evidence at a private hearing in the Family Division of the High Court, in the Royal Courts of Justice complex in London on Friday, said he agreed.

Relatives wanted treatment to continue, saying they had seen movement and signs of life. Mr Casey’s sister, Christine Casey, told the judge she did not believe that he was brain-stem dead.

She said after the ruling: “I am so angry.”Barrister Abid Mahmood said brain-stem testing by two specialists had shown that Mr Casey was dead.

“This is a tragic matter whereby the trust seeks a declaration that very sadly Andy’s brain-stem function has died and that thereby he has died,” Mr Mahmood told the judge.

Mr Mahmood told the judge in a written case outline that Mr Casey was involved in a fight in a pub garden on July 9 and had been “punched to the head” and fell to the ground. He said specialists had diagnosed death on July 16. The judge, who heard that Mr Casey had remained on a ventilator since being injured, said such cases were “the most serious”.

Specialists say Mr Casey’s brain-stem function has died and he is therefore dead, but relatives disagree. Mr Justice MacDonald considered evidence at a private hearing in the Family Division of the High Court, at the Royal Courts of Justice complex in London, on Friday, and gave ruling on Tuesday.

A lawyer representing St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, in Tooting, south London, which has responsibility for Mr Casey’s treatment, asked the judge to rule that it would be lawful to cease “artificial ventilation and care”.

A St George’s Hospital spokesperson said: “Our hearts go out to Mr Casey’s family at this incredibly difficult and upsetting time and we will continue to do all we can to support them.”

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