Man not guilty of manslaughter after citizens arrest gone wrong in Bristol

Nathan Smith, 38, has been cleared of the manslaughter of suspected thief Craig Wiltshire, 43, by a jury at Bristol Crown Court after four hours and seven minutes of deliberations.

Mr Wiltshire lost consciousness and never recovered after Smith knelt on his back for nine minutes while performing a citizen's arrest on 20th November 2019.

He died in hospital two weeks later from catastrophic brain damage on 4th December.

Mr Wiltshire was suspected of being behind a string of burglaries and car break-ins in a suburb of Bristol where Smith's employer lived.

In CCTV footage of the incident, Mr Wiltshire can be heard telling Smith he cannot breathe.

NOTE: Smith's comment in the above video that "every single person here was trying to hold him," was not true, as discussed during the trial.

During his trial at Bristol Crown Court, Smith said he thought the victim was faking it, so that he would release him.

In his closing speech to the jury on Tuesday, Smith's barrister David Hughes said: "Nathan Smith did not go out as a vigilante to exact revenge or to mete out punishment."

He described the arrest as a "public-spirited" act, adding that Smith was described by witnesses as a valuable and decent member of the community.

"In his evidence he said the last two years have been the worst of his life, he was previously happy and now has regular visits to the doctor and has been prescribed antidepressants, and his general mood has been sad," Mr Hughes said.

"You may conclude, and rightly so in my submission, that there are no winners from the events of the early hours of November 20 2019."

"A considerable amount of time has been has been devoted to the language used," Mr Hughes said.

"The language is unpleasant, it's abusive, but this was a highly charged, unique situation - (Smith) is dealing with a thief, a burglar or an attempted burglar and he wants to detain him until the police arrive to arrest him."

Mr Hughes continued: "There were repeated references to 'I can't breath' - one thing is clear, he (Mr Wiltshire) continues to struggle after saying I can't breathe."

He added that several neighbours had come to assist, adding: "They would not have been required if Craig Wiltshire was no longer struggling because he couldn't breathe."

Det Supt James Riccio from Avon and Somerset Police said: “This has been an extremely complex and sensitive investigation into the death of a 43-year-old man.

“Members of the jury have listened to all the evidence and concluded Mr Smith is not guilty of manslaughter. We respect and accept the jury’s verdict.

“Mr Wiltshire’s family have been supported throughout by a specially trained liaison officer.

“We recognise these legal proceedings will greatly impact the affected community and we would urge anyone with worries or concerns to speak to their Neighbourhood Policing Team.”

A judge ruled this morning (Wednesday) that the jury would be allowed to return a majority verdict in the case, and after just over 4 hours of deliberations they returned a not guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge.

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