FATAL Accident Inquiries (FAI) into deaths in custody are “traumatising” for families, and the increase in such fatalities has been branded “unacceptable” by the Scottish Human Rights Commission (SHRC).

The conclusions came in a new report aimed at improving the system, brought together in co-ordination with Inquest, a charity that supports families after the state-related deaths of loved ones.

A “family listening event” with 33 grieving relatives during the course of the study found they had to contend with warnings about risk to life being ignored, authorities stating the cause of death only for it to be retracted, and one instance of prison officers eating their packed lunch on a hospital bed containing the body of a prisoner.

While some good practice was experienced, the report found “they were described as rare exceptions within a broader landscape of confusion, silence and neglect.”

The report, which will feed into the Scottish government’s independent review of FAIs under sheriff principal Ian Abercrombie, called for improvements including guaranteed legal representation, trauma-informed practice, legally enforced time-scales, and co-ordinated communication after a death.

SHRC chair Professor Angela O’Hagan said: “Scotland will only improve its system of investigating deaths if decision-makers hear, truly listen to and take account of the experiences of families.

“Scotland has a very high rate of deaths in its places of detention, and these deaths are rising. 

“We simply cannot continue in this seemingly endless cycle of new reviews and recommendations while deaths in detention continue to rise.”

Calling the report a “wake-up call,” Inquest executive director Deborah Coles added: “It cannot be overstated just how cruel, and retraumatising families’ experiences are. 

“This is unacceptable.

“Families’ testimony and recommendations must be translated into meaningful action.”

Pledging to give the report “full consideration,” Justice Secretary Angela Constance responded: “We recognise the profound impact that a death in custody has on families, and the concerns families have raised about the FAI system which we know can lead to trauma and anxiety for loved ones.”

Recognising “more can be done,” a spokesperson for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said: “As Scotland’s independent authority for death investigation, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is committed to placing families affected by unexplained deaths at the heart of everything we do.”