A coroner has concluded that police were correct to chase an 18-year-old driver at speeds of up to 130mph along the M60. The chase happened minutes before Brandon Pryde drove the wrong way down the motorway and smashed into another car, causing the death of both drivers.
An inquest at Manchester South Coroner's Court heard how Brandon, known as Brandon Geasley, had been driving a car reported stolen earlier that morning when he accelerated away from police, initiating a pursuit. The hearing focused on whether police should have discontinued the pursuit at any point, whether there were any measures in place to attempt to bring the chase to an end, and whether the pursuing officers forced Brandon onto the slip road which led to him travelling the wrong way down the M60, seconds before his death.
However, assistant coroner Adrian Farrow concluded that officers were justified in their pursuit, and it was proportionate for them to continue the chase even as higher speeds raised the risk of both the drivers and members of the public being injured in the crash. He identified two deviations from Greater Manchester Police's pursuit protocol, but did not believe either of those contributed to Brandon's death or made the pursuit invalid.
Three days of evidence covered the circumstances surrounding the chase, with no evidence suggesting Brandon was involved in the theft of the BMW X4 that he was driving at the time of the crash. GMP had previously charged a man in his 40s with the crime, and the coroner determined that the car had been stolen by "someone else". When the high-value car was spotted by PC Jennifer Barrow, a tactical officer with the police, it accelerated away from her, in what would become the start of a relatively short chase across the south-eastern edge of the region.
PC Barrow chased Brandon down Altrincham Road at speeds of 70mph at around 10.15pm, going through three roundabouts before he headed onto the M56, where his speed reached 110mph. Brandon then entered the M60, hitting speeds of 130mph as he sped towards Stockport, coming off at junction 27. PC Barrow was unable to follow Brandon around the roundabout though, and when a following dog unit came to a stop on the slip road, Brandon headed back down the slip road in the wrong direction, joining the M60 as he travelled the wrong way down the motorway.
Summarising the inquest, Mr Farrow said: "Brandon passed to the offside of the stationary vehicle and initially travelled in the outside lane of the M60 in the wrong direction. Dashcam footage from the pursuing officers, CCTV footage, Dashcam footage from passing motorists and witness evidence has shown that Brandon moved from the outside lane to the inside lane ahead of a Vauxhall Insignia driven by David Faulkner. Neither Brandon nor Mr Faulkner had more than a second or two to appreciate they were travelling in the same lane towards each other. Neither had sufficient time to react to what was an inevitable high speed collision."
Mr Farrow identified two "lapses" in GMP's procedure for pursuits: PC Barrow not seeking authorisation to continue the pursuit when she informed her control room of the chase, and GMP assuming the North West Motorway Policing Group had taken command and control of the chase when it entered the motorway, whilst the organisation was still in the process of assessing the incident and had not taken over the pursuit, leaving it without a leader who had the authority to call off the chase. Despite this, Mr Farrow said "neither of these lapses were causative of Brandon's death".
He determined that police had no way of knowing who was driving the vehicle, and so could not pursue other avenues of investigation other than chasing the recently stolen vehicle for information about the theft. Although Brandon did not steal the car, officers were eventually able to arrest and charge a man in connection with the theft. Mr Farrow concluded that Brandon died as a result of a road traffic accident, after determining that his right to life under article two of the European Convention of Human Rights was not breached by GMP's actions that evening.
An inquest into the death of David Faulkner, the driver of the Vauxhall Insignia Brandon crashed into, will begin on Monday, July 11, examining whether anything could have been done differently to prevent the collision. Speaking after the inquest, Brandon's family said: "Brandon was a loving son and brother. We miss him so much. We believe Brandon was killed as a result of the unnecessary and disproportionate police pursuit. It cannot be right that the police pursue at over 120 mph, for minor allegations, with such a significant risk to life and safety.
"GMP showed a complete disregard for the life of Brandon and the public. We are pleased the evidence in the inquest demonstrated that he did not steal the vehicle that he was driving. It also showed that he had ADHD, which would have impaired his decision making. So many young boys are being killed in this way and enough is enough. We are working with other affected families and we are planning to a launch a major campaign alongside other bereaved families.
"The experience of losing Brandon has been devastating. We wish our experience never to be repeated. We wish to create a legacy in the memory of Brandon. We will continue to pursue justice for him and other loved ones and we thank everyone for the enormous support we have received throughout. We give our thanks to the Coroner, Adrian Farrow, for his sensitive and detailed investigation. We also extend our condolences to the family of Mr Faulkner. If they ever felt ready to speak to us, we would always be open to doing so."
Greater Manchester Police have declined to comment until Mr Faulkner's inquest concludes next week.
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