Unexplained death

Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridge Major Crime Unit, Hertford Block, Hertfordshire Police

In response to concerns raised during postmortem examinations of the deceased, relating to the presence of various electrical items attached to the body, I was instructed to undertake an inspection of the electrical installation at the property, in order to afford my opinion in considering the possibility that the deceased was electrocuted and whether such an electrocution could have been the cause of death.

Client comment:

“An investigation into a sudden death of a male to which the male was found badly decomposed in a flat. The male lived alone, and police had to force entry During the investigation it was noted that the male had numerous amounts of wiring either wrapped on or around his body, the question then led to if this wiring was part of the causation of death? Was this death suspicious? Was this a suicide? Also were there health and safety issue to take into account?

Through the NCA we used Mr Barry Kelly to attend and assist with the questions as asked above. Mr Kelly duly attended with my crime scene manager and scenes of crime officer. After a day of examination, a verbal report was given to myself that made it quite clear that the electrical system within the flat was in good order, and that even though there had been some ‘different’ electrical works they all conformed to standard even though they may have looked somewhat unusual to the forensic team attending in the first instance.

Mr Kelly then provided a full statement including photography to back up his case that there were indeed no suspicious circumstances for the police to concern themselves with on this occasion.

Mr Kelly’s report was then added to the full report to HM Coroner for Bedfordshire who was then able to conclude that this was in fact a death of Natural Causes and that any issue of electrification had been negated.

I would not hesitate to use Mr Kelly in the future, his attendance and report were all delivered as promised in a timely manner”.

Historical murder enquiry

Stirling Police Scotland, Major Investigation Unit, Randolphfield Police Office, Stirling

This instruction related to a long term historical murder enquiry requiring an opinion relating to a number of evidential electrical components including a piece of electrical cable, and an electronic transformer/convertor used in neon lighting signs.

A detailed instruction consisted of a technical analysis of the evidential components, questions relating to whether the cable could be used in the construction and operation of neon signage and the requirement to produce a short video explaining the operation requirements of a neon sign, including the identification of all necessary component parts.

Client comment:

“We instructed Mr Kelly as an expert witness on electrical matters and specifically someone who can give an opinion on the uses of a specific electrical cable.

I initially met Mr Kelly when a colleague and I took the available historical evidence to his office, where he undertook his inspection of the electrical equipment. Mr Kelly was easy to deal with and it was clear that he understood the detailed, technical issues required in this case.

Mr Kelly’s report was clear, concise, fully supported with manufacturer’s data and this coupled with his video presentation, enabled non-technical people to understand the complicated technical issues in a practical manner.

We would not hesitate to use the services of Mr Kelly in the future”.