A MAN who was detained in Garda custody after ambulance crew workers refused to bring him to hospital due to fears for their own safety collapsed in his cell and died three days later, an inquest has heard.
David Tyrrell (43), Swan Grove, Ranelagh, Dublin, suffered a cardio-respiratory arrest approximately a minute after he was put in a cell at Store Street Garda station on April 10th, 2007, Dublin City Coroner's Court heard.
Emergency services were called and Mr Tyrrell was resuscitated and removed to the Mater hospital, where he survived on a life support machine for three days.
The inquest heard that the same ambulance crew who attended to him at the Garda station had been called to attend to Mr Tyrrell - a suspected overdose - on two earlier occasions in the vicinity of Dominick Street flats in Dublin.
In first instance Mr Tyrrell, who was described by Dublin Fire Brigade ambulance crew member Rod Hayden as drunk but conscious and alert, was abusive towards the two crew members and told them to f*** off, when they asked him on three occasions to go to hospital.
Mr Hayden told the court that they could not force a person to go to hospital against their will.
Fifteen minutes later Mr Hayden and his colleague Cathal Cobb received a second call to go to the scene, where up to 30 people had gathered.
"The crowd began to drag Mr Tyrrell toward the ambulance. Two irate females approached the ambulance and told us to take Mr Tyrrell away [to hospital]," said Mr Hayden.
The ambulance crew decided to wait for the gardaí, whom they had contacted en route.
"There was a crowd of people and we felt we were in danger. . . you can't take a chance of someone turning on you," said Mr Hayden.
Garda Brian Walsh and his colleague Garda Joe Molloy called for a patrol car to bring Mr Tyrrell to Store Street Garda station after the ambulance crew had told them that Mr Tyrrell had refused to get into the ambulance, was intoxicated and that he was not in any medical danger.
"I decided to bring him to the station for his own safety," said Garda Walsh. He was unaware that it was the crew's second time in attendance.
One minute after Mr Tyrrell was placed in the cell he was noted to be unresponsive.
State Pathologist Prof Marie Cassidy, who carried out a post-mortem, said Mr Tyrrell's death was drug-related and he suffered irreparable brain damage during the course of the arrest.
A screening at the hospital at the time of his admission revealed that Mr Tyrrell had a cocktail of drugs in his system including cocaine, opiates and cannabis.
She told the court it would be difficult to differentiate between intoxication with alcohol and intoxication with drugs.
An internal Garda inquiry was held into the circumstances surrounding Mr Tyrrell's death.
The jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure under the direction of the coroner, Dr Brian Farrell.