Earlier, two other officers had said in the investigation into the death of Bayoh in custody in Kirkcaldy in 2015 that they saw him punch former PC Nicole Short, after which she fell to the ground and he “kicked” her in the back. Dr Kathryn Mitchell, an accident and emergency specialist who examined Short shortly after the collision with Bayoh, confirmed that the history obtained did not mention the seal. Short said earlier in the investigation that she did not remember the alleged sealing and that only later, when police officers involved in the arrest gathered in the staff canteen, did her colleagues say they believed she had lost consciousness and had seen Bayoh “stamped” and kick “. Nicole Short arrives at the Capital House in Edinburgh on May 24 for a public inquiry into Sheku Bayoh’s death. Photo: Andrew Milligan / PA Mitchell was asked about Short’s details, in which she described that she experienced severe pain in her right hand after the attack. “If she had complained of severe pain in her right arm when you examined her, would you have noted it?” she asked. “I see no reason why I should not do it,” Mitchell replied. Bayoh was handcuffed to death and suffered multiple injuries after police responded to calls from the public about a man wielding a knife and behaving erratically one Sunday morning in Fife’s Kirkcaldy in May 2015. The independent investigation, led by Lord Bracadale and taking place in Edinburgh, is the result of a long-running campaign by the Bayoh’s family, who believe his death was caused by suffocation due to police tactics. They claim that the officers reacted excessively and were motivated by racial prejudice. Dr Gillian Norrie, a medical examiner who examined her shortly after the incident, found no back or kidney injuries. In her medical notes, Norrie said she had been told the officer had been “sealed”, information she believed came from Short herself. Sheku Bayoh died in May 2015 after being stopped by police officers who responded to a call at Kirkcaldy in Fife. Photo: Family Handout / PA Earlier, PC Ashley Tomlinson told the investigation that Bayoh “was stepping on it [Short’s] back “so hard that he thought she was dead, while PC Craig Walker showed a” full-force stamp “with his arms raised. These accounts are disputed by another witness, Kevin Nelson, who said last week that sealing descriptions “were not possible”. Dr Ian Anderson, an expert who examined Short three weeks after the incident at the behest of her lawyer, said she had suffered head injuries, but agreed that if the officers’ testimony were accepted, she would expect there would be some visible marks of this on her body. Asked if he agreed with Dr Rudy Crawford’s statement that “there were certainly no signs of serious injuries caused by the stamp”, Anderson replied: “Yes, yes”. Crawford, who was called in to look at Short’s files for the Crown Office, told the investigation: “There was certainly no evidence of serious injuries caused by the seal. “In my opinion, the stamp is a very dangerous and potentially deadly injury mechanism, it can cause very serious life-changing injuries.” The investigation continues.
