Latest news with #M5
Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Autistic girl, 17, killed on the M5 after escaping police car had removed her handcuffs before jumping out of moving vehicle, report finds
An autistic girl who was hit by a car and killed on the M5 after jumping out of a moving police car had been able to remove her handcuffs before making her doomed escape, a report has found. Tamzin Hall, 17, who had been arrested for assault and criminal damage, was being taken into custody by two officers in a police car on November 11 last year when the tragedy occurred. An inquest hearing at Wells Town Hall later that month was told, Tamzin, who was a student, got out of the car and crossed the road before climbing the crash barrier. The police vehicle stopped on the northbound carriageway of the M5 between junctions 25 at Taunton and 24 at Bridgwater shortly after 11pm. She was hit by a vehicle driven by a member of the public travelling on the southbound carriageway and was pronounce dead at 11.10pm after sustaining fatal head, neck and chest injuries. Coroner's officer Ben Batley told the hearing: 'Her injuries were not survivable and Tamzin was declared deceased where she was found on the motorway.' The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating her death, including the contact two Avon and Somerset Police officers had with Tamzin before she died. It is examining their 'actions, decision-making and risk assessments of the situation and whether these followed relevant training and policies'. At the time of the crash, police said the M5 was closed following a fatal collision between a 'pedestrian and a car' and neglected to mention she had fled their vehicle. It was only some six hours later - after the IOPC revealed it was investigating - the force disclosed the full circumstances. An annual report published today by the IOPC on deaths following police contact has revealed more information on how Tamzin got out of the car. It detailed how she was able to remove her handcuffs and climb from the rear passenger side seat to the front passenger seat of the police car. The report, which does not name Tamzin, says: 'A female child was arrested for assault and criminal damage. 'She was placed in the rear passenger side of a marked police car and handcuffed with her hands positioned in front. An officer was seated next to her during transport. 'While on her way to custody, the child managed to remove her handcuffs, climb into the front passenger seat, access the front passenger door and get out of the moving car. 'The child ran across the road and was struck by a vehicle being driven by a member of the public, on the opposite carriageway. The child died at the scene.' In a tribute a couple of weeks after Tamzin's death, her mother Amy Hall said: 'Tamzin was the most kindest, caring, loving, loyal girl ever. She was the most honest person I've ever known; she was very special to me. 'She had a great sense of humour, and we had many laughs together. 'She was my shadow from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning until she went to sleep at night. She was such an intelligent young girl and had such interesting perceptions on things in life.' She added: 'Tamzin was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, so she was unique and saw the world in such a different way. 'Tamzin was my absolute everything and I can't believe she isn't here anymore. She was my world. 'She put her all into absolutely everything. She loved helping out as a young child, if you set her a task, she would put her all into it and want it just right. 'She was always so thoughtful and would put others before herself. She loved the simple things in life, talking and her family. Plus, she absolutely loved chocolate – she was chocolate mad!' 'Tamzin was such a wonderful daughter. She was a beautiful person. 'My life will never be the same but I'm using my strength for my other children, Tamzin's siblings. 'She was only 17 but she has taught me a lot and I can use that memory and hold on to that. 'I will never ever get over it, she was taken far too young.'
The Independent
13 hours ago
- The Independent
Girl killed in crash after fleeing police car had removed handcuffs, says report
A teenage girl who fled a police vehicle and was killed after being hit by a car on the motorway had been able to remove her handcuffs and climb from the back to the front seat, it has emerged. Tamzin Hall, 17, died as she was being taken to a custody suite in Bridgwater by two officers in an Avon and Somerset Police car in November last year. On Thursday, an annual report on deaths following police contact gave additional details about how Tamzin, who had been arrested on suspicion of assault and criminal damage, got out of the car. The report, published by watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct, detailed how she was able to remove her handcuffs and climb from the rear passenger side seat to the front passenger seat of the police car. The report, which does not name Tamzin, says: 'A female child was arrested for assault and criminal damage. 'She was placed in the rear passenger side of a marked police car and handcuffed with her hands positioned in front. An officer was seated next to her during transport. 'While on her way to custody, the child managed to remove her handcuffs, climb into the front passenger seat, access the front passenger door and get out of the moving car. 'The child ran across the road and was struck by a vehicle being driven by a member of the public, on the opposite carriageway. The child died at the scene.' The police vehicle stopped on the northbound carriageway of the M5 between junctions 25 at Taunton and 24 at Bridgwater shortly after 11pm on November 11 last year. Later that month an inquest hearing at Wells Town Hall was told Tamzin, who was a student, got out of the car and crossed the road before climbing the crash barrier. She was hit by a vehicle driven by a member of the public travelling on the southbound carriageway and sustained fatal head, neck and chest injuries. The IOPC is investigating her death, including the contact that two Avon and Somerset Police officers had with Tamzin before she died. It is examining their 'actions, decision-making and risk assessments of the situation and whether these followed relevant training and policies'.
BBC News
14 hours ago
- BBC News
Girl who died fleeing police car on M5 'had removed handcuffs'
A teenage girl who died after escaping a police vehicle and being hit by another car on the M5 had been able to remove her handcuffs, it has been Hall, 17, died as she was being taken to a custody suite in Bridgwater by two officers in an Avon and Somerset Police car in November 2024.A report from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), published earlier, has detailed how she removed her handcuffs and climbed from the rear passenger side seat to the front passenger seat of the police car, which was parked on the side of the then left the car, climbed across the crash barrier and was hit by a car on the opposite carriageway. Ms Hall had been arrested on suspicion of assault and criminal damage and was being taken to a custody suite in Bridgwater from Taunton via the police car was on the northbound carriageway of the motorway, between junctions 25 and 24 just before 23:00 GMT on 11 IOPC report, which does not name Tamzin, says: "A female child was arrested for assault and criminal damage."She was placed in the rear passenger side of a marked police car and handcuffed with her hands positioned in front. An officer was seated next to her during transport."While on her way to custody, the child managed to remove her handcuffs, climb into the front passenger seat, access the front passenger door and get out."She was pronounced dead at the scene after being hit as she crossed the southbound carriageway, the report added.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Yahoo
Girl killed in crash after fleeing police car had removed handcuffs, says report
A teenage girl who fled a police vehicle and was killed after being hit by a car on the motorway had been able to remove her handcuffs and climb from the back to the front seat, it has emerged. Tamzin Hall, 17, died as she was being taken to a custody suite in Bridgwater by two officers in an Avon and Somerset Police car in November last year. On Thursday, an annual report on deaths following police contact gave additional details about how Tamzin, who had been arrested on suspicion of assault and criminal damage, got out of the car. The report, published by watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct, detailed how she was able to remove her handcuffs and climb from the rear passenger side seat to the front passenger seat of the police car. The report, which does not name Tamzin, says: 'A female child was arrested for assault and criminal damage. 'She was placed in the rear passenger side of a marked police car and handcuffed with her hands positioned in front. An officer was seated next to her during transport. 'While on her way to custody, the child managed to remove her handcuffs, climb into the front passenger seat, access the front passenger door and get out of the moving car. 'The child ran across the road and was struck by a vehicle being driven by a member of the public, on the opposite carriageway. The child died at the scene.' The police vehicle stopped on the northbound carriageway of the M5 between junctions 25 at Taunton and 24 at Bridgwater shortly after 11pm on November 11 last year. Later that month an inquest hearing at Wells Town Hall was told Tamzin, who was a student, got out of the car and crossed the road before climbing the crash barrier. She was hit by a vehicle driven by a member of the public travelling on the southbound carriageway and sustained fatal head, neck and chest injuries. The IOPC is investigating her death, including the contact that two Avon and Somerset Police officers had with Tamzin before she died. It is examining their 'actions, decision-making and risk assessments of the situation and whether these followed relevant training and policies'.
Top Gear
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
BMW USA: the E39 M5 nearly had a turbocharged straight-six instead of a V8
Retro More tales from BMW's crypt: how the Best M5 Of All Time got an eight-pot Skip 7 photos in the image carousel and continue reading More fascinating tales from BMW North America's crypt, and this one's a (literal) biggie. Development of the E39-generation M5 kicked off in earnest in 1993, and faced with outfitting its new super-saloon with a turbocharged straight-six or V8, BMW was strongly considering bolting in the former. But BMW was also strongly considering the very future of the M division. The 'mechanically complex' 3.8-litre six-pot heart of the E34 M5 meant that car found just 1,476 homes in the USA. Just 13 per cent of global production run. Advertisement - Page continues below The E30 M3 – kneel before thine mighty arches! – struggled too, and BMW North America not only rejected the 'expensive and too high-maintenance' E36 M3, but considered canning M cars altogether. This, plainly, was an issue. BMW M needed the US onside. When a simpler, slightly-less technical and more affordable E36 M3 arrived Stateside and sold more than expected, discussions about the E39's powerplant were increasingly viewed through the lens of what US customers liked. You might like Karlheinz Kalbfell, then BMW M boss, continued to campaign for the six-pot, believing it to be 'the heart and soul of BMW'. They even mooted a V6 – 'which would have been a total outlier within the BMW engine universe'. That would have cost too much money, and by this point BMW had 'wasted' years figuring out how to make it work. So it went for the V8. And because BMW didn't have a racing V8 already in action, it took the M62 that saw service in the 530i, 540i, and 740i. Advertisement - Page continues below In doing so, M had to give up one of its most cherished values: mad revs. 'M's philosophy at the time was high-revving engines, which we couldn't achieve with the V8 concept we had,' said Alex Hildebrandt, who at the time was the E39 M5's project leader and head of product management. The rev limiter was still raised from 5,700rpm in the cooking cars, to 6,600rpm in the M5, while the displacement jumped from 4.4 to 5.0-litres. It of course got individual throttle bodies, and a few 'maintenance-reducing' internal tweaks that'd appeal to US buyers. The result was a cool 400bhp and 368lb ft of torque, helped along to the rear axle via a six-speed manual gearbox and limited slip diff. Elsewhere, you know the story: stiffer springs and dampers, stronger componentry and bigger brakes versus a 540i. A supremely sensible aero-honed body. Gorgeous wheels. And a wide suite of additional extras – like sat nav and leather and Xenons – thrown in for free. Well, not free, but $69,700. 'It hadn't been deliberately designed for the US,' said BMW, 'indeed its 'American' V8 had come about organically, as the answer to a technical problem rather than marketing concern, but the E39 M5 seemed tailor-made for the US market.' Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox. Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox. When production of the E39 M5 stopped in June 2003, the US had bought 9,198 cars – just under half of the 20,482 E39 M5s built in total. It helped, of course, that the base E39 was such a wonderful, wonderful car. 'Along with the E36 M3, the E39 M5 turned the US into the world's largest market for M cars worldwide, helping to ensure the M brand's future within BMW. Moreover, the V8 engine helped catapult the E39 M5 into a higher echelon of performance,' said BMW. And to think, it very nearly had a turbocharged straight-six…
