Fatal Accident Inquiry Excludes Window Safety Review
The safety of a high-rise window from which a man, subjected to torture, fell to his death in Aberdeen will not be examined as part of the upcoming fatal accident inquiry (FAI).
Jamie Forbes, aged 37, was held captive in a flat at Elphinstone Court for two days in January 2024 before falling from a 12th-floor window.
Emergency services were alerted after witnesses heard cries for help and called 999. However, police door-to-door investigations failed to identify the source of the distress calls.
A motion had been proposed to include the window and its opening restrictor as evidence in the FAI. Nevertheless, Sheriff Principal Andrew Miller rejected this proposal, and the inquiry is scheduled to commence later this month as planned.
Conviction and Court Details
Lee Smith, also 37, was sentenced to eight years in prison in December 2024 after pleading guilty to culpable homicide.
At the High Court in Edinburgh, Lady Hood was informed that the abuse inflicted on Forbes was so severe that he felt compelled to jump from the window.
Police discovered that the flat's door lock had been tampered with, making the window the only possible escape route.
Officers found Smith washing dishes in the kitchen and noted bloodstains throughout the flat.
Smith had repeatedly struck Forbes with a hammer and also punched and kicked him during the assault.
Debate Over Window Safety Evidence
Peter Watson, representing the police officers involved, stated at a preliminary hearing on Tuesday that the window's safety was within the inquiry's scope.
"It was potentially a relevant factor in the circumstances of the death, and was therefore in the public interest to be explored in evidence."
However, Gavin Burton, representing the Crown, argued that the case's circumstances were very specific and that no concrete evidence existed regarding the condition of the window restrictor.
"It was a case where somebody had been forced into a position where they had to take the 'unenviable' decision to exit the flat via the window."
Burton added that it was unknown whether Forbes had to break the restrictor, only that leaving through the door was not an option.
Family's Position and Inquiry Scope
Alan Wickham, representing the Forbes family, described the window safety issue as "wholly speculative."
"The victim had been forced from the window by the prevailing circumstances and because there was no means of exiting via the door."
"There are no witnesses who can tell us if it was broken,"
he added, noting that no safety standards accounted for such circumstances.
Sheriff Principal Miller stated that including potential evidence about the window's characteristics was unlikely to produce meaningful recommendations and might distract from the inquiry's primary focus.
He also noted that incorporating this evidence would require rescheduling, potentially causing significant delays.
The Sheriff Principal expressed satisfaction that the current scope of the proceedings adequately reflected the circumstances of the death and declined the request to include window safety evidence.
The inquiry is set to begin on 26 May and will last four days, followed by additional submissions.
