East Midlands Ambulance Service sorry over man's death
An ambulance service has apologised for the care given to a man who later died in police custody.
Epileptic Sean Hardy, 30, from Pinxton in Derbyshire, called an ambulance in December 2006 but paramedics decided he did not need hospital treatment.
East Midlands Ambulance Service and the police were criticised at his inquest which ended earlier this week.
A ambulance spokesman apologised to the family and confirmed both paramedics involved had since left the service.
In 2006, Mr Hardy was assessed by the ambulance crew then arrested by police over an outstanding offence.
His condition deteriorated and he died at a police station hours later.
The inquest jury criticised the quality of care given to Mr Hardy, but found he died of natural causes.
The spokesman for East Midlands Ambulance Service said: "We extend our condolences to Mr Hardy's family and offer our sincere apologies for the way in which our staff handled the situation when attending his home.
"There were shortcomings in the way these crew members responded to the call to Mr Hardy's home in 2006, but since that time we have learned lessons and taken steps to avoid a case like this happening again in the future."
He added paramedic David Burkinshaw did not return to duty after the incident and colleague Barry Worgan underwent a period of retraining but resigned soon after.
The police were also criticised in a report from the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) for missing chances to secure help for Mr Hardy.
Both the inquest and the IPCC found there was no way of knowing whether he would have lived if treated promptly.