SAVANNA-LA-MAR, Westmoreland — A medical professional has revealed that Mario Deane was not given the course of treatment recommended, and this lessened his chances of surviving the beating he received while in police custody in 2014.

The acting senior resident medical doctor, who is assigned to Cornwall Regional Hospital, told the Westmoreland Circuit Court that he had recommended that Deane be placed on a ventilator and in an intensive care unit (ICU), but that was not done as the facilities were not available.

“The intensive care at that time, the unit had four functional beds, all of which were occupied,” stated the senior doctor under cross-examination from defence lawyer Martin Thomas, who is representing two of three cops charged in connection with the 2014 incident in which Deane was fatally beaten while in police custody.

“To my recollection, it was a six-bed unit at the time. Two beds were not functional…,” added the witness, whose name is being withheld in keeping with the judge’s instructions not to identify by name individuals providing testimony.

The witness added that while an endotracheal tube (ETT) was used, there was a recommendation to also utilise a ventilator to support Deane’s breathing.

Deane was arrested for possession of a ganja spliff and placed in custody, where he was brutally beaten on August 3, 2014. He sustained severe injuries to his brain, which left him in a coma. He died three days later at Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James.

The three cops on trial are Corporal Elaine Stewart, district constables Marlon Grant and Juliana Clevon, all of whom are charged with manslaughter and misconduct in a public office.

On Monday, the general surgeon with more than 20 years’ experience testified that on August 5 he first saw Deane, who had a persistent fever, multiple facial injuries — swelling and bruises — and a bandage around his head. Deane also suffered from brain ischemia, also known as cerebral ischemia.

Prior to the surgeon being notified, Deane was attended to by junior staff at the hospital.

The doctor, who is the Crown’s 14th witness, said that an assessment of Deane’s level of consciousness gave him a score of three on the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). Three is the lowest, while 15 is the highest on the scale. The doctor said people with a score of three have a 20 per cent chance of survival under the right settings.

Following the assessment Deane was recommended for a review by a neurosurgeon, who gave him a score of five. The GCS assessment evaluates the conscious level of an individual’s eye, verbal and motor responses.

A computed tomography (CT) scan was also recommended, and two were performed. The first test did not show any abnormalities but with the doctor realising that something was wrong, a second scan was performed. It confirmed bleeding in the brain.

The doctor noted that Deane had limited brain function, despite his vitals being okay. He also explained that the brain cannot survive without oxygen for more than three minutes and, given the difficulty breathing and the swelling of the face, it is possible that Deane did not have an ample supply of oxygen to the brain, which could lead to a secondary hypoxia.

Under cross-examination from attorney Dalton Reid, who is representing Clevon, the doctor noted that Deane’s chances of deteriorating would have been less if he had been placed in the ICU.

The doctor also revealed that after realising Deane had not been placed in the ICU as recommended, he attempted to determine if he could be placed with other institutions in Kingston, but no space was available.

The general surgeon added that he saw Deane again on August 6, after receiving a call that led him to visit the male general surgical ward where Deane was in cardiac arrest. He said that medical practitioners tried unsuccessfully to restart his heart.

It is alleged that the three cops were on duty at the police station when Deane was beaten. It is further alleged that Stewart, who has an additional charge of perverting the course of justice, instructed that the cell in which the attack took place be cleaned before the arrival of investigators from the Independent Commission of Investigations.