Devon farmer, 37, died after refusing to be taken to hospital

A Devon farmer and dad-of-three died after refusing to be taken to hospital after a drugs overdose. Matthew Petherick, of Winkleigh, took a spontaneous overdose following a court appearance for drug-driving.

His family have questioned whether he was capable of making that decision to refuse treatment due to being intoxicated and under the influence of the medication he had taken.

An inquest at Exeter Coroner’s Court on July 12, heard Mr Petherick had a previous history of drug and alcohol misuse with periods of being well and building on a successful farming career. However, on November 26, 2021, the keen bell ringer appeared at Barnstaple Magistrates Court on a charge of drug-driving and lost his licence for three and a half years.

In a statement, his wife Emma told how he had wanted to go to the hearing on his own and when she rang him afterwards he said he was okay and wanted time to process what had happened. She recalled he then arrived home at 6.15pm after driving while drunk.

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He then drove to his local pub, despite her protests not to. She later went to pick him up but said he refused to get in her car and instead drove home in his truck. When he returned home she described him as having been angry and upset.

She said: "He was very drunk and not making sense." He then proceeded to take a large overdose of medication prescribed to him and also took some prescribed to his wife.

Mrs Petherick said: "He was intent on taking them; nothing could stop him. He got very emotional and kept repeating he was done. I called an ambulance at 1.34am. He was conscious but not making much sense."

By the time an ambulance crew arrived he was unconscious and was given medication to reverse the effects of what he had taken, the inquest heard. He refused to be hospitalised, despite being warned of the risks, and was said to have stated he would continue his overdose.

He was asked to sign a waiver confirming he did not want treatment and Mrs Petherick was advised to call 999 if his condition worsened. She told how she continued to monitor him with the help of family and later that day at 4.30pm he stopped breathing.

An ambulance crew took over resuscitation attempts and he was taken to the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital but had suffered a catastrophic brain injury and passed away the following day. The cause of his death was the combined toxic effects of the two prescription drugs he had taken before the first ambulance was called.

A paramedic who was sent to Mr Petherick's home after he took the overdose told the inquest he had refused 'point blank' to go to hospital and according to their mental capacity assessment criteria he was deemed to have capacity to make the decision.

The paramedic said: "Apart from explaining the risks, there was nothing more we could do."

Mrs Petherick said: "To me, he did not have that mental capacity."

She told how she and Mr Petherick had met in August 2020 and married less than six months later. She described him as a talented man and hardworker and said he had been 'clean' when they met and remained so for most of their relationship until the summer before his death.

She added he had always seemed happy and had not considered taking his life previously.

His mum Caroline told in a statement how he grew up on their family farm and loved being outdoors. She described him as having been a 'very bright and intelligent young lad', who learned to drive tractors as soon as his feet could touch the pedals.

After leaving school she said he could 'turn his hand to any job' but his passion remained farming. He became an agricultural contractor and following the death of his father, he moved back to the family farm and lived on the land in a caravan and set up his own business which included a sheep enterprise.

His mum said he knew there was a strong possibility he would have his licence taken away again following his last driving offence and had been making plans for how he could still successfully continue with his business.

She said: "I'm sure he had been fighting demons over the past few years. He was not one to share his thoughts like so many men."

She added: "He seemed happy and more content and had the support of family and friends. I like to think it [his death] was accidental rather than intentional."

Mr Petherick's health records confirmed he had suffered with his mental health in the past and when taken into police custody on a couple of occasions he had not engaged with mental health services.

Alison Longhorn, area coroner for Exeter and Greater Devon, said that although he had expressed a desire to die when he took the overdose, due to his heavily intoxicated state a conclusion of suicide would not be appropriate. Instead, she recorded a narrative conclusion that he had taken excessive medication, the combined effects of which were fatal.

She said: "There is nothing to suggest he was unhappy generally and he had not made comments to friends or family he was contemplating harming himself.

"I think very sadly, in this case, it was a split-second decision that then could not be reversed."