Age: 75
Sex: male
Date: 1 Nov 2014
Place: Pickard Street, Warwick
William Heathcote died after he went out to confront some children that had banged on his window.
A man was charged with his manslaughter but the case was later dropped after it was determined that it could not be shown that the unlawful act of banging on his window had caused him to have a heart attack.
After the man had banged on William Heathcote's window William Heathcote went outside armed with a broom and waved it at the children outside his home who were laughing at him.
A doctor stated that William Heathcote had enough heart disease to have a potentially fatal arrhythmia at any time but would not have had a heart attack then if there had been no confrontation.
He also said that whilst the act of banging on William Heathcote's window was an unlawful act, a public order offence, the action of remaining at the scene and laughing at William Heathcote and dodging his broom was not.
As such, it could not be determined that his heart attack had been caused by his actions in confronting the children with his broom or by the banging at his window and the case was dropped.
After the banging at his window, which was not an isolated event, William Heathcote went outside with his broom and confronted the children outside but when he turned to go back in he collapsed and died.
