Archie Battersbee died 'during a prank that went wrong' as death ruled 'accidental'
dailyrecord.co.ukA coroner has concluded that tragic schoolboy Archie Battersbee died “inadvertently during a prank or experiment that went wrong”.Senior coroner Lincoln Brookes said there was no sign Archie intended to harm himself on the day he was injured although there was evidence he experienced low mood in the last 12 months of his life and she recorded his death as an accident.
The 12-year-old was found unconscious on April 7 last year at his home in Southend, Essex, with a ligature around his neck. His parents lost a legal battle with doctors over the withdrawal of his life support and Archie died four months later in hospital, the Mirror reports.
The inquest heard that police had found no evidence to support the belief Archie had taken part in a social media ‘blackout challenge’.
The court also heard that officers discovered Archie was in Whatsapp groups called “Help” and “I’m depressed”. Archie referred to experiencing low mood in a number of messages that were uncovered by forensic analysis of his mobile phone.
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