Murderer Brian Field Should Not Have Been Handcuffed While Dying from Cancer Says Ombudsman Report
An ombudsman report has revealed that Brian Field, convicted of the 1968 murder of 14-year-old Roy Tutill, should not have been handcuffed while dying of cancer in hospital. Field, who was 87 years old, passed away from gastric cancer at HMP Full Sutton in February 2024. His treatment in the final days of his life was the subject of a detailed investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.
Field was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2001 after new DNA evidence linked him to the 1968 murder of Roy Tutill, who was abducted while hitchhiking from school. The young boy was raped, strangled, and his body found days later in a copse in Mickleham, Surrey. Field’s involvement in the crime was uncovered when his DNA, collected during a drink-driving arrest, was matched to evidence from the murder, reported by Yahoo.
Despite his conviction for Roy’s murder, investigations into Field’s potential involvement in other crimes followed. He was linked to the 1984 murder of 15-year-old Mark Billington and the 1996 disappearances of 11-year-old David Spencer and 13-year-old Patrick Warren. Although Field lived near where the boys had gone missing, police never found sufficient evidence to charge him in those cases.
The ombudsman report criticized the decision to restrain Field during his hospital visit while he was in the advanced stages of cancer. It stated that the use of handcuffs was “not justified given his advanced age,” and noted that Field suffered bruising from the restraints. However, the report did commend the medical care Field received during his imprisonment, stating that his treatment was “appropriate, compassionate and responsive.”
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice commented on the findings, stating: “HMP Full Sutton prisoner Brian Field died of natural causes on 4 February 2024. The prison has implemented all of the Ombudsman’s recommendations, improving its processes for the use of restraints and how this is recorded.”
The report, while critical of the handcuffing, found that no further recommendations were necessary regarding Field’s medical care.