Maria was watching the news on the television. Maria's husband, Ahmed was on a peace march in London and Maria knew the news would cover the event. Maria watched the news coverage with interest. To her horror she saw the crowd on the march get out of control, as the police attempted to use a technique called "kettling".*However, the crowd was forced back against a wall and several people were crushed or fell to the ground and were trampled underfoot.

*(Kettling is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area)

Ten people died and fifteen were seriously injured. The news reported that this accident was due to poor policing. Mina, a pregnant woman, was on a shopping trip sitting on a bus about twenty-five metres from the incident. She saw and heard the incident.Mina went into shock caused by what she had seen and suffered a miscarriage.

Maria was horrified as she realized Ahmed may be injured. Ahmed was indeed one of those injured.Maria, in her shocked state, got into her car to drive to the local hospital to see if she could find Ahmed. She drove through a red light and hit a cyclist, Geoff, causing him to fall off his bike and break his arm. Geoff was not wearing a cycling helmet.

When Maria eventually arrived at the hospital, she saw her injured husband in the Accident and Emergency department covered in blood and writhing in agony. She suffered nervous shock because of what she witnessed.

Geoff was given medication by the hospital to which he suffered a bad reaction, causing him to lose consciousness. Six months later he was still in a coma.

1. Advise Maria on any claim she may have against the police in the tort of negligence.

2. Explain if Mina may be able to claim compensation for her miscarriage brought on by the trauma of witnessing the incident.

3. Explain what must be proved for a successful legal action to be brought on Geoff's behalf against Mariafor the full extent of his injuries. Consider the likelihood of a claim being successful.

4. Explain what must be proved for Geoff to bring a successful action against the hospital in negligence