Carer could face prison term for failing to co-operate with inquest into teenager’s death

A staff member at a London care facility could face prison – after he refused to co-operate with an inquest into the death of a teenager with mental health issues.
19-year-old Sophie Bennett took her own life at the Lancaster Lodge psychiatric facility in 2016. Duncan Lawrence – who described himself as her ‘clinical lead’ – refused to attend the inquest, which found that ‘neglect’ contributed to her death. Today he admitted he was ‘100 percent guilty’ in a case thought to be a legal first.