Hearing into death of man shot by police near Bristol to be held this week

Spencer Ashworth, 29, was shot by firearms officers on the A369 Portbury Hundred on September 27, 2017

A coroner's hearing into the death of a man shot dead by police at a motorway roundabout near Bristol will take place this week.

A pre-inquest review hearing is scheduled for Friday (December 13) at Avon Coroner's Court in Flax Bourton into the death of Spencer Ashworth.

Mr Ashworth, 29, was shot by firearms officers on the A369 Portbury Hundred on September 27, 2017.

Police were responding to reports of a motorist travelling on the M5 with a handgun, who had allegedly threatened another driver.

An inquest into his death was initially opened - where his identity was confirmed -  and adjourned in October 2017.

A full inquest hearing is due to take place next March, almost two and a half years after Mr Ashworth’s death.

The inquest is expected to last five weeks.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) opened an inquiry immediately after the incident.

The Portbury Hundred was closed for several days while police examined the scene.

On the day of the shooting, police were responding to reports that a man had wielded a handgun and threatened other motorists while driving south on the M5 from the Midlands.

Police stopped Mr Ashworth’s vehicle, a red Suzuki Swift, on the Portbury Hundred near junction 19 of the M5.

Shots were believed to have been fired by four authorised firearms officers from Avon and Somerset Constabulary, the IOPC previously said.

At the time it was suggested that Mr Ashworth was chased off the motorway by police before he was shot through the passenger side window, while pictures from the scene showed the target vehicle riddled with bullet holes – including through the rear windscreen.

Within a couple of days of his death, the IOPC dropped its investigation into the conduct of two other forces - West Mercia and Gloucestershire - and concentrated on the actions of Avon and Somerset Constabulary.

The regional head of the police watchdog said all the firearms officers had been "treated as witnesses throughout" their investigations and that body-worn camera footage formed a key part of the inquiry.

The IOPC confirmed in February - almost a year and a half after Mr Ashworth was shot -  that it had completed its investigation.

However, its findings will not be published until they form part of the inquest hearing into Mr Ashworth’s death.