Keyham inquest: Police should have been aware of gunman's 'thread of violence' in lead up to killing

Police should have been more aware of a "thread of violence" running through the life of a gunman who killed five people, a firearms licensing expert has told an inquest.

Speaking at the inquest into the Keyham tragedy, Superintendent Adrian Davis, co-ordinator for firearms licensing on the National Police Chiefs Council, said there was a "pattern of behaviour" throughout Jake Davison's teenage years which made him unsafe to own a gun.

The 22-year-old went on to carry out one of the UK's worst mass shootings using a legally-owned pump-action shotgun which he then turned on himself.

Davison killed five people, including a three-year-old girl and his own mother in August 2021.

Supt Davis listed several times Davison came into contact with the police from the age of 12 to 19 for violent incidents, along with his medical conditions such as autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) and anger management issues.

"In his application in 2017, Jake Davison stated he had ASD and ADHD, that's your first flag," he said.

"The licensing team need to understand how that manifests itself - how does it impact or not impact on that individual’s ability to own a shotgun without causing a danger to public safety or the peace?"

He added: "From what I understand, that question wasn’t answered."

The court has previously heard that Davison assaulted two teachers and a pupil at Mount Tamar School when he was aged 12 and 13.

Asked whether that should have been taken into account by the firearms licensing team, Supt Davis said: "Absolutely, they are relevant.

"This is not a 30 or 40-year-old man. This is someone who is 19-years-old, these incidents are not well in the past.

"He is still very young, has come through schooling and there are issues. I fully accept they have not ended in a conviction, but the police have become involved, there is a thread of violence."

Supt Davis also pointed to two further alleged incidents of violence, in 2015 and 2016, which did not result in formal police action, and then in September 2020, when Davison attacked a teenage boy in a skate park in Plymouth.

He was not charged with a criminal offence and although his shotgun licence was confiscated, it was not formally revoked.

"He has admitted to a serious assault", Supt Davis said.

"I've seen the CCTV, it was very good quality, on the basis of that I would have revoked the licence, absolutely."

The court was told firearms enquiry officer David Rees did not view the CCTV when assessing the skate park incident and did not use the force's "risk matrix" when making his recommendation.

Davison was referred to the 'Pathfinder' scheme, designed to prevent reoffending and divert people away from the criminal justice system.

He completed an online course, and a Pathfinder keyworker told the firearms licensing unit he had "no concerns" about Davison in early 2021.

Supt Davis said: "With all due respect, that’s fine, you haven’t got any concerns, but the licensing team should have concerns.

"I would expect better engagement to give you that opportunity to assess suitability.

"This isn’t reliant on an e-mail from the restorative justice team to the firearms licensing team.

"I am still back in the skate park, and I’m taking myself back over the years with this thread of violence.

"You should have all the facts. But so much has occurred at this stage the decision should be to revoke."

Jake Davison also told emergency mental health staff he had self-harmed, was struggling with his body image and had mood swings just months before the tragedy, the inquest heard.

Following the call, Davison was classed as "low risk", was not offered any further assessment or specialist mental health support, but was given contact details for advice services.

Davison's mother, Maxine, called LiveWell South West's 24-hour crisis helpline in May 2021, three months before the shootings, to say she was concerned her son's state of mind was getting worse, the inquest heard.

Davison spoke on the same call, saying he would sometimes become angry, suffered from low libido, felt "stuck in his house with his mum" and was "still a virgin".

He told the call handler he did not have suicidal thoughts, but "has self-harmed when he becomes angry as a form of punishment".

The call handler did not ask whether Davison owned a weapon.

She assessed him as a low risk to himself or others and did not feel further assessment or a face-to-face meeting with a specialist mental health practitioner was needed.

She sent him an e-mail with contact details for services such as Plymouth Options, Citizens Advice and Headspace.

In her assessment report, the call handler wrote: "Jake is someone who has become frustrated with life. He feels he won’t be able to progress in life and that it’s too late for him."

The report did not make any reference to self-harm or fluctuating mood.

Sara Mitchell, associate director and strategic mental health lead at Livewell Southwest, was questioned about this at the inquest.

She said: "I think for the information offered on that day, I would say that entry was appropriate for that service.

"He was clear there was no intent to self-harm or suicidal thoughts.

"There was no information that deemed it to be a high-risk call or that he needed to be seen urgently."

The court also heard that back in 2013, when he was aged 14, Davison's mother was so concerned about his obsession with guns that she disconnected their home internet connection.

He was referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) by his school.

A CAMHS assessment said he had a dream of moving to America, which was 'expressly linked' with his obsession with guns.

He was described as "very dominant" at home and "used his size to intimidate his mum".But his mental health was reported as "stable" with "no thoughts of suicide or self-harm".The inquest continues.

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