Police stop mum on way to dying son (From Stroud News and Journal)

Police stop mum on way to dying son

A MOTHER rushing to the side of her dying son has complained that police prevented her from reaching him when he collapsed at home. Pensioner Shirley Eaton, from Painswick, was stopped, questioned and breathalysed as she drove through Stroud in the early hours of Monday, August 12. At 1.20am she had received a call from her daughter-in-law after her son, Jonathan, who had cancer of the larynx, started haemorrhaging seriously. Mrs Eaton was needed to take care of the couple's nine-year-old twin sons while their parents went to hospital. She set off for their Nailsworth house but as she left Stroud on the A46 a police car pulled her over. It was manned by a police constable and a WPC. Mrs Eaton said: "I jumped out of the car and said I was in a panic to get to Nailsworth. "I had to look after my grandsons who were distressed after seeing what happened to their father and could not be left on their own. "There was little time to spare because Jonathan had already lost two or three pints of blood. "The male police officer asked if I had been drinking. "I said I had taken a drink at about 11pm before I went to bed, without knowing I would be driving at 1.30am. "In no way was I drunk or behaving in a disorderly fashion. "I begged the officer to follow me to Nailsworth or take me in his car, but he showed little compassion for my situation. "He seemed determined to take all my details and breathalyse me at the side of the road though I asked him to do it after we got to Nailsworth." Mrs Eaton was allowed to continue her journey after a 15 to 20 minute delay. Her son died in Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on Thursday, August 15. "This incident has made me lose faith in the police force," she said. "Where do compassion and understanding come in? "I was later visited by Inspector McGarry, who told me the officer involved had said I was speeding. "I wasn't speeding because I was scared I would have an accident. It was so awful." Police spokesman Steve Partridge said police visited Mrs Eaton to offer condolences and explain their practices. She was stopped, he explained, because she had a faulty brake light and was believed to be speeding. She admitted she had been drinking so she was given a breath test. Mr Partridge said: "The first priority of the police in relation to motoring offences is the safety of road users. "Mrs Eaton was stopped for the minimum time necessary to carry out the testing process and satisfy themselves there was no danger in letting her continue. "Police will always try to take into account personal circumstances but have a duty to ensure road safety."