Inquest concludes into the death of a Teesside veteran
The inquest into the death of a Hartlepool veteran has concluded, with a Teesside coroner concluding he was under the influence of drugs when he died.
The inquest into the death of a Hartlepool veteran has concluded, with a Teesside coroner concluding he was under the influence of drugs when he died.
Alan Forcer, who was 40, was found in woodland near Stockton in May 2020, after going missing.
Mr Forcer had been supported by the charity Combat Stress - who support veterans - but was told 3 months before his death that the service was being re-designed.
The Inquest heard how the former Household Cavalryman, from Hartlepool, joined the Army aged 16 and served in Northern Ireland, and after a distressing tour of Kosovo, aged around 18, he was eventually discharged.
In May 2020, the father-of-three went missing from his current partner's home in Hartlepool and his body was eventually found by police in woodland near Stockton-on-Tees.
Teesside Coroner Clare Bailey recorded a narrative conclusion, rather than suicide, after hearing three days of evidence.
A post-mortem examination showed that Mr Forcer had cannabis, cocaine and a trace of ketamine in his system when he died.
The coroner said: "Taking into account the level of drugs in his system, I cannot say on the balance of probabilities that Alan intended to take his own life.
"It is likely the presence of drugs impaired his cognitive and decision-making abilities."
Her narrative conclusion found that Mr Forcer was a military veteran who suffered from PTSD and that he died "whilst under the influence of drugs".
The inquest began last month but was adjourned to hear evidence on the final day from nurse David Shaw, who works for a sign-posting NHS service which assists veterans to get help for mental health issues.
Mr Shaw had worked with Mr Forcer in the months before his death and the former soldier had described his mental health issues, including depression and anxiety.
The coroner said Mr Forcer had not presented himself to be in crisis at any time when he met Mr Shaw.
Mr Forcer was aware of help that was available to him and was looking to join a course where ex-servicemen work with horses later in the year, the inquest heard.
The coroner said Cleveland Police, which led a search for Mr Forcer after he went missing, will discuss with Mr Forcer's ex-wife Claire Lilly methods of raising the alarm for veterans who may be in crisis.
Ms Lilly, who had a son with Mr Forcer, had previously told the inquest that she informed the police that her ex had had a breakdown in his current relationship, might be under the influence of drugs, that he had come out of trauma therapy and that he had tried to kill himself before.
"He had post-traumatic stress disorder, he was high risk, basically, and needed to be found," she said.
Commenting after the inquest through the law firm Ison Harrison Limited, Alan’s family said:
“Although a very traumatic experience, we are pleased that an identifiable flaw has been highlighted within the veteran care pathway.
"Essentially we have identified that there is in fact a stumbling block for future veterans to access what has been presented as a newer, improved veteran mental health service that will be easier for veterans to access.
“It is well known that veterans find it incredibly difficult to engage with those professionals who do not have a deep-rooted understanding of the military mind and culture. There is therefore a reluctance for them to “opt in” to these services which is what they are being asked to do.
“What is the point of a veteran-specific mental health service if veterans cannot access it without first failing in their treatment with non-specialist veteran local services?
“We feel quite strongly that they failed to give Alan the tools to cope and now we have to live the rest of our lives without him.”
Gemma Vine, solicitor from Ison Harrison, said:
“We believe that the evidence at this inquest has demonstrated the clear difficulties and barriers that veterans face in accessing mental health care in the community.
"In this case, Alan had a clear diagnosis of Service attributed PTSD, possibly complex and even with that diagnosis he still found it impossible to access veteran-specific NHS services for stabilisation and psychological therapy to treat his PTSD in February and March 2020.
“The family believes that the current criteria for veterans to access the Veterans’ Mental Health Complex Treatment Service makes it extremely difficult for any veteran to access their care given they would first have to access local non-specific veteran care first, which are often “opt-in” services which we already know from the outcome of the Ben Riches Inquest is a system which veterans find very hard to navigate and is essentially a barrier to care.”