Dc Michael Swindells’ killer was ‘let down by NHS’ – inquiry
A catalogue of NHS system failures contributed to the killing of a police officer by a paranoid schizophrenic, an independent report has found.
Glaister Earle Butler stabbed detective constable Michael Swindells in the heart on May 21, 2004 after a chase along a canal towpath in Birmingham. The 44-year-old father was attacked as he went to help passers-by, being threatened by Butler who was armed with a kitchen knife.
The independent report revealed Butler, 50 at the time of the incident, was ‘let down’ by NHS outreach workers who failed to assess the extent of the risk he posed.
The inquiry – carried out for NHS West Midlands, the body which oversees health services – blamed system failures instead of individuals for the mistakes. Health chiefs said no one had or would face disciplinary action.
At the time of the stabbing Mr Butler was a patient under the Small Heath Assertive Outreach Team – run by the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Trust – following his discharge from a psychiatric hospital in October 2001.
He was convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility and detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act at a secure hospital.
A 282-page report into his care found outreach workers did not realise the extent of his illness, failing to comprehend the risk he represented. The inquiry found the team responsible for monitoring him engaged in only ‘brief interaction and superficial contact’, often visiting him only every fortnight.
