Man sues police and emergency services over father’s fatal custody delay
John Makai died after suffering a traumatic brain injury during a drunken altercation with his son and spending hours unconscious in a police cell. His son, Terewa Makai, is suing Victoria Police, Triple Zero Victoria and Ambulance Victoria, alleging negligence by emergency responders caused injury, loss and damage.
An inquest heard that an ambulance was requested, but the call was changed to a police job and paramedics were delayed by workload pressures. Police arrested Makai and took him to Broadmeadows station; an ambulance was apparently cancelled around 3am amid confusion, and requested 15-minute cell checks were missed. He remained almost motionless for hours, was found after 6am, and paramedics arrived at 6.29am. His blood alcohol level at hospital was 0.13, and his injuries were unsurvivable; Victoria Police apologised, while saying it was unclear whether anything could have saved his life.
- John Makai died after hours unconscious in a police cell.
- His son is suing three emergency service providers.
- An inquest heard an ambulance was cancelled and cell checks were missed.
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John Makai suffered a serious brain injury during an altercation with his son, Terewa, and was taken to a police station in Broadmeadows, a suburb of Melbourne. In Victoria, Australia, Triple Zero is the emergency number, and ambulance calls are handled by Triple Zero Victoria and Ambulance Victoria.
The case concerns how police and ambulance services responded when Makai was unconscious in custody. An inquest examined the delay in medical care and the checks made on him in his cell; an inquest is a formal inquiry into a death, rather than a criminal trial.
Terewa Makai’s claim alleges that the emergency services’ actions caused harm and loss. The case matters because it may examine the responsibilities of police and ambulance services when someone in custody needs urgent medical attention.
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The case for
The lawsuit’s case is that emergency services had several chances to recognise a serious head injury and get medical help to Makai sooner: an ambulance was requested, its attendance was apparently cancelled amid confusion, and scheduled cell checks were missed. A timely response may not have changed the outcome, but the family can reasonably argue that the services should be held accountable for avoidable failures and the harm they caused.
The case against
The services may argue that the available evidence does not establish that their actions caused Makai’s death or that earlier treatment could have saved him, given that his injuries were described as unsurvivable. Responders were also dealing with workload pressures and a confused sequence of calls, circumstances relevant to assessing individual responsibility, even if they do not remove the need to examine what went wrong.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Dad died after boozed-up brawl with his son – but now his family is suing police, Triple Zero and paramedics: ‘Deep drunken sleep’”.