The Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is facing a probe into corporate manslaughter in connection with the care provided to Valdo Calocane, who killed three people in the city in 2023. Calocane's family has expressed satisfaction with the investigation, with one of his sons, Lee Coates, stating that it aligns with their efforts.
While the investigation specifically concerns corporate manslaughter, there is potential for individual accountability to be examined if deemed appropriate. A conviction for corporate manslaughter could result in an unlimited fine for the trust. Under sentencing guidelines in England and Wales, an organization with a turnover exceeding £50 million could face fines up to £20 million, depending on the severity of the offense and any aggravating or mitigating factors.
Concerns regarding Calocane's care centered on the alleged failure to adequately assess and manage his risk to others. Evidence presented during an inquiry indicated that Calocane had a history of not complying with his medication and could become violent when unwell. The trust was already under scrutiny from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), a health and social care watchdog, prior to Calocane's treatment. An internal email in October 2021 suggested that the trust's services were not safe, citing concerns about staffing levels.
During the period when Calocane was under the trust's care, he had been sectioned three times. A former mental health nurse and one of Calocane's care co-ordinators, Gary Carter, testified at the inquiry that Calocane had managed to "out-maneuver medical and nursing services within the trust." Carter further stated that inpatient services had failed and that staff had "run out of ideas as to how to manage this man, when it was blatantly obvious what needed to happen to him."