Families say 'breathtaking incompetence' saw Keyham gunman given 'licence to kill'

The families of the Keyham tragedy victims say the gunman's act of "pure evil" was enabled by a series of failings and "breathtaking incompetence" by police.

Jake Davison, 22, shot dead his mother Maxine Davison in the home they shared on 12 August 2021 before taking his shotgun onto the streets of Keyham.

In a 12-minute attack, he then killed Lee and Sophie Martyn, Stephen Washington and Kate Shepherd before turning the gun on himself.

When Davison was granted a shotgun licence in 2017, he had a history of violence.

The gun was confiscated after he attacked two teenagers in 2020 but was returned just weeks before the shootings in Keyham.

Speaking after an inquest jury delivered its conclusion into the deaths of Davison's victims on Monday 20 February, the families of Lee and Sophie Martyn, Stephen Washington and Kate Shepherd said warning signs about Davison were ignored and he was granted a "licence to kill".

In a statement, they said: "Our hearts are still incredibly heavy with grief, and we are still struggling to come to terms with our loss.

"We will never be able to understand or comprehend why Davison did what he did. It was an act of pure evil.

"However, we now know that this evil act was facilitated and enabled by a series of failings and incompetence from the people and organisations that are supposed to keep us safe.

"The system has hopelessly failed us. In particular, the Devon and Cornwall Police force has failed us."

The court heard five weeks of evidence about how Davison was allowed to legally own a shotgun despite a history of violence and known medical conditions.

In their statement, the families said the inquest revealed breathtaking incompetence and systemic failings within every level of the firearms licensing unit of the Devon and Cornwall Police force. 

They added: "It is beyond us how Davison, a man with a known history of violence, mental health issues, and with no real need to own a firearm, was granted a licence to possess a gun in the first place.  

"The evidence that we have heard from Devon and Cornwall Police was that of a system that was a shambles from the top to the bottom. 

"Those in charge of making decisions as to who should possess a gun had no training on how to do the job.

"There was no supervision of those individuals. There was no auditing of the decisions that were being made."

The court heard there was a "culture" of granting shotgun licences within the department, and that proper checks were not carried out.

The families added: "These systemic failings with Devon and Cornwall Police have failed to protect the public. They failed to protect our loved ones.   

"We firmly believe that these failings at Devon and Cornwall Police have resulted in the deaths of our loved ones.

"Warning signs were ignored and a licence to kill was granted."

The family statement added that "there has been very little evidence of regret or remorse in the decisions, actions, omissions or catastrophic mistakes made by Devon and Cornwall Police".

Chief Superintendent Roy Linden, giving evidence towards the end of the inquest, accepted that mistakes had been made and apologised to the families of the victims.

"It felt to us that senior officers from Devon and Cornwall Police closed ranks during this inquest process", the families said.

"It is too late for an apology from Devon and Cornwall Police. The time for that has passed. We want accountability, ownership and change."

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