A senior coroner will review everything he has about the death of former NHL and Nottingham Panthers player Adam Johnson on Friday.
The 29-year-old died after suffering a cut to the neck from a skate in a Challenge Cup match between his club and the Sheffield Steelers on October 28. The Nottingham Panthers described it as a “freak accident”.
South Yorkshire Police (SYP) launched an investigation and a man was arrested in November on suspicion of manslaughter and later released on bail following Johnson’s death.
And now, Tanyka Rawden, Chief Coroner at Sheffield Coroner’s Court, will make a table of the progress of the investigation tomorrow.
The review will be held behind closed doors and, if Rawden is happy that the investigation is complete, it will be decided whether or not a pre-inquiry review hearing should be held or whether the investigation can be scheduled without a hearing.
However, if she believes the investigation has been completed, additional orders will be given to her officer and an election date will be set.
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An inquest into Johnson’s death was opened on 3 November and was then promptly adjourned until 26 January after a brief hearing at Sheffield Forensic Centre.
The investigation found that Johnson was taken to Northern General Hospital in Sheffield on October 28, where he died later that day as a result of his injury.
On Nov. 14, SYP Chief Detective Commissioner Becs Horsfall gave some key points about the precise nature of the force’s investigations.
“Our investigation began in the immediate aftermath of this tragedy and we have conducted thorough investigations since then to reconstruct the events leading up to Adam’s loss under those unprecedented circumstances,” he said in a message posted on SYP’s website.
“We have spoken to highly specialist experts in their field to help us with our investigations and continue to work intensively with the Shefbox City Council’s Health and Safety Department, who support our ongoing investigation.
“Adam’s death has shocked many communities, from citizens here to ice hockey enthusiasts around the world. “
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(Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images)