Doctor 'told tragic teen his life was a car crash'

MUM TELLS INQUEST PSYCHIATRIST HAD TO APOLOGISE FOR REMARKS

- HELENA VESTY

A TEENAGER with a 'history of severe self-harm' was told his life was a 'car crash' by a psychiatrist involved in his care in a 'stretched' mental health unit, an inquest has heard.

The inquest into the death of Charlie Millers has started after more than a year of delays. The 17-year-old trans boy died five days after he was found unresponsive in his room on mental health unit Junction 17 at the former Prestwich Hospital site, run by Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust (GMMH), on December 2, 2020.

Two other patients being treated at the hospital also died within nine months of Charlie.

The first day of the four-week inquest was told how Charlie had been through a lot of 'trauma' throughout his life including being 'bullied at school, with 'acid thrown on him' and 'sexual abuse' over the course of five years. Charlie felt 'worthless struggled with 'big feelings of shame' and 'did not feel safe in his relationships' ahead of his death, one doctor said.

An inquest was delayed in January 2023 so the Greater Manchester Police inquiry could take place after it emerged at a coronial hearing that hospital records may have been edited after Mum Sar his death.

The M.E.N. understands a GMP investigation has concluded and that there is insufficient evidence for authorities to seek a prosecution for manslaughter by gross negligence. The inquest began yesterday at Rochdale Coroners Court.