He agreed he was 'in the s***' and hours later he was dead

An inquest into the death of James Riley, who died in March 2023, opened today

A man who suffered a terrible childhood trauma died in police custody. James Riley, 44, was arrested by Merseyside Police officers on suspicion of drug offences in the Scotland Road area on March 14 2023.

Mr Riley, who was kept in a cell overnight, was found lying on the floor and was pronounced dead at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital the following evening. A post-mortem carried out following his death found "wraps" of a substance in his stomach and right lung.

An inquest into Mr Riley's death opened today, Monday, May 12 at the Gerard Majella courthouse in Vauxhall in front of a jury, as is customary when investigating a death in custody. Liverpool and Wirral senior coroner André Rebello told the 11-person jury, made up of six men and five women, that Mr Riley was arrested at around 9.45pm by two officers who took him to St Anne Street Police Station.

The court heard his detention was authorised and he was placed in a rest period until the following morning on March 15 2023. Mr Riley was seen at 9.59am by a healthcare professional who determined his substance levels showed he had "either self medicated or had substances in his cell".

A strip search was authorised and Mr Riley was placed into a further rest period. Mr Riley was seen again in the afternoon, but during a routine observation at 4.57pm, a detention officer saw him lying on the ground. Two other officers and a healthcare professional attended and an ambulance was called.

Mr Riley was taken to hospital but was pronounced dead at 6.15pm. The court heard today that an independent Home Office post-mortem was carried out by Dr Matthew Lyall, who determined in his report that the cause of death was due to cocaine and heroin toxicity. Mr Rebello said during the doctor's examinations, wraps of suspected drugs were found in Mr Riley's stomach and also in his right lung. This position was put down to movement during resuscitation efforts.

Mr Rebello told the jury that nobody was on trial and it was their job to determine who Mr Riley was and where, when and how he came to his death. The inquest was attended by Mr Riley's mum Julie, who was represented in court by Michael Wall.

Before Mr Rebello opened the investigation, which is listed for eight days, a statement was read on behalf of Mrs Riley, who told the court the proceedings were an emotional strain but she "needed to get through it to get some justice". The court heard Mr Riley was "well mannered and dressed lovely" when he was a boy.

He had three younger siblings and was particularly close to his brother Terence, with his mum describing the pair as "loveable rogues". Mrs Riley's statement said her son was "funny, bubbly and cheeky" and recalled a fond memory of when he was around 10 years old and dressed as Shirley Bassey during a caravan holiday.

The mum added: "He was such a character...we have so many happy memories." However, the statement said Mr Riley, his brother and two other friends "experienced an extremely traumatic incident" which was said to have deeply affected them. The mum said: "He should have had support from Merseyside Police, but he was forgotten about."

Mrs Riley said after the experience her son "got involved with the wrong crowd" and added: "It's hard to get out once you are in it." However, she said her son remained a "happy go lucky person who always had a smile on his face". The mum added he was "an incredible cook" and loved to watch Liverpool FC on the sofa with her. The statement finished: "I speak to a photo of him every night - I miss him so much."

The first witness called to give evidence was police constable Graeme Hurd, who arrested Mr Riley. The court heard the officer had 17 years' experience on the force and was part of a Matrix unit which specialised in disrupting organised crime. He told the court he was on a uniformed patrol in an unmarked car when he saw a man running down Scotland Road.

The court heard the man looked "suspicious, like something was about to happen". The officer said he and his colleague followed the man and saw him approaching "another male on a pedal cycle", who was later identified as Mr Riley. PC Hurd told the court Mr Riley "looked like he was in possession of what I thought was going to be drugs".

He added it was his assumption that Mr Riley, who was dressed in a tracksuit and black balaclava which obscured part of his face, was going to hand the drugs to the other man. PC Hurd said he made the decision to use force to apprehend Mr Riley and decided to make contact with the front wheel of his bike with the front of his car.

He told the inquest this decision was "less risk to everybody". The court heard he made contact with the bike, which was the "force equivalent of pushing someone off the bike". However, Mr Riley made off towards Great Homer Street, with PC Hurd rugby tackling him to the ground.

The court heard Mr Riley did not put up a struggle and was arrested on suspicion of possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply after he was found with "three large bags of brown powder". The court heard Mr Riley was also in possession of a "tick list", a Samsung "personal phone" and a Nokia which was dropped earlier in the proceedings.

PC Hurd said he asked Mr Riley "are you in the s*** now", because he believed the man would be "potentially under threat" over the lost drugs. The court heard Mr Riley responded "not half".

The inquest continues.