David John Thompson · Prevention of Future Deaths report

A coronial investigation was commenced on 9ᵗʰ March 2023 into the death of David John Thompson, aged 46. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest on 3ʳᵈ February 2026. The conclusion of the inquest was suicide, and the medical cause of death was recorded as 1a) hanging.

On 6ᵗʰ March 2023, David Thompson went missing from his home address. He had a history of low mood, had expressed thoughts of suicide previously, and had been experiencing a number of challenging life events in the weeks before. His partner reported him missing to the police and he was graded as a ‘medium risk’ missing person. He was located the following morning, ████████
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(1) The inquest heard that when Mr. Thompson’s partner reported him missing to the police, she was repeatedly asked (by both the 999 call handler and the attending police officers) whether he had demonstrated any ‘suicidal ideation’. It was clear that she did not fully understand what that meant, and as a result information which would have been relevant to the consideration of the level of risk presented by Mr. Thompson going missing was not recorded by the police.

(2) Furthermore, I heard evidence that the term ‘suicidal ideation’ was still being widely used by the constabulary when asking questions of members of the public who were reporting missing persons, and I am concerned that a member of the public may not understand what is being asked of them and may not therefore respond appropriately.

(3) During the course of the inquest I heard evidence from 5 police officers and 2 members of the police staff. When asked what their understanding of the term ‘suicidal ideation’ was, their answers were vague and inconsistent. There therefore appears to be a lack of understanding by those employed by the police as to what the term means, creating a danger that the risk posed by a missing person is not fully appreciated by staff responding to a missing person report.