Portsmouth man died in prison after drinking hooch and taking non-prescribed medication, inquest finds

The inquest was held at Dorset Coroner’s Court, Bournemouth, and took place between Monday 14 July and Tuesday 22 July 2025. 

It heard evidence that access to hooch and non-prescribed medication at the prison was widespread. The jury was directed that it could not make a finding as to how Sheldon came to access the alcohol or medication. However, evidence was heard that medication was, in general accessed in prison through a range of methods including the use of drones, being thrown over prison walls and prisoners trading their own prescribed medication.

In September 2022, just two months before Sheldon’s death, the prison had recorded that 215.5 litres of hooch had been intercepted, and 78 prisoners had been reported following suspicions they were under its influence. In that same month, Sheldon had been found under the influence of hooch and a “code blue” had been called when he was found not to be breathing properly due to an alcohol coma.

The temporary deputy governor of the prison, and security governor at the time of Sheldon’s death, was among those who gave evidence to the inquest. She accepted that, despite hooch being a widespread issue, the prison did not have a specific policy for reducing access to hooch in the prison, and that the prison’s focus at the time was on how drugs were getting into prison rather than the making of hooch.

The jury, summoned by HM Senior Coroner, Rachael Griffin, found that Sheldon, 32, who had a history of mental health issues, had been in a heightened mental state on the day of his death brought on by the impending outcome of a recent parole hearing. 

The jury found that, although the level of the substances that Sheldon consumed would not on their own be fatal, when consumed together, they caused a high level of sedation and this, combined with Sheldon’s body posture, resulted in respiratory depression. 

The jury found that at no point had it been identified that Sheldon had in his possession or was under the influence of hooch or non-prescribed drugs, and this resulted in no additional checks on him during the night until he was found dead in the morning. 

The jury concluded that Sheldon’s death was misadventure and found that, while he did deliberately consume the substances, he did not intend to end his life as a consequence of his actions. On the record of inquest, Sheldon’s medical cause of death has been listed as idiosyncratic response to alcoholic intoxication and medicinal drugs (pregabalin, mirtazapine, dihydrocodeine, and quetiapine), and partial postural asphyxia.  

After the jury gave its conclusion and findings, HM Senior Coroner confirmed that they would be making a prevention of future death report about the lack of a policy on hooch, both at a local level at HMP Guys Marsh and a national level across the Prison Service, including awareness of the dangers that it poses to prisoners and its governance and management by prisons.

Sheldon’s family are represented by Leigh Day partner Benjamin Burrows and solicitor Ellie Sutherland.

Following the inquest, Sheldon’s family said:

“Shelds’ heart was as big as his infectious smile. As a family we will forever grieve for him and miss his funny and loving ways. His bubbly character could bring a smile to anyone’s face. 

“We hope the outcome of this inquest will lead to the prison service putting in the resources that are needed to tackle the problem of drugs and alcohol in prisons, which will in turn help prevent other families going through the same heartache.

"Serving time in prison is about accountability, but it must also provide rehabilitation. It is crucial that prisoners with mental health and substance misuse problems are protected, so that one day they can get back on track and return to the community”.

Leigh Day partner, Benjamin Burrows said:

"Sheldon’s case shows that it can be all too easy to access illicit substances in prison which poses a significant risk to the tens of thousands of vulnerable prisoners struggling with addiction.

"The evidence heard during Sheldon’s inquest reinforces recent reports that show this problem is getting worse, not better. It’s not just at HMP Guys Marsh - this issue impacts the entire prison estate across England and Wales.

“It is clear that urgent and proactive steps must be taken to address it.” 

Counsel for the family is Emma Favata, Garden Court Chambers.