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Spindrift<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\nA carer has been electronically tagged after a disabled woman she was looking after fell down an escalator and later died in hospital. <\/p>\n Debbie McWhannell, 33, pushed 71-year-old Catherine Muir’s wheelchair onto the escalator at Easterhouse Shopping Centre in July 2023 because the lift was out of order but lost control and it fell down. <\/p>\n Ms Muir, who was non-verbal and had various medical conditions, suffered a broken jaw. She died in hospital 11 days later having contracted pneumonia.<\/p>\n McWhannell, from Glasgow, ignored a sign that warned against putting wheelchairs on an escalator.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n She pleaded guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court to an offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act.<\/p>\n Sheriff Shona Gilroy tagged McWhannell for six months, keeping her indoors between 20:00 and 09:00 as an “alternative to custody”. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n McWhannell, a supported living assistant for Inclusion Scotland, had initially taken Ms Muir, who was prone to dizziness, up an escalator at the shopping centre.<\/p>\n When they descended, McWhannell held onto the wheelchair with one hand.<\/p>\n Prosecutor Kristina Reilly said: “When the wheelchair with Catherine [Muir] strapped in began to descend, McWhannell lost her grip completely and the wheelchair tumbled to the bottom.”<\/p>\n Ms Muir, from Dunoon, Argyll and Bute, suffered a head injury and a fractured left jaw which required surgery, including restoring displaced bones using rods and screws.<\/p>\n She was placed in the high dependency unit but contracted pneumonia and died 11 days later.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Catherine’s brother Donald and sister Janet said they did not want McWhannell to be jailed. <\/p>\n “She made a horrible mistake and she will have to live with that for the rest of her days – it should never have happened,” they said. <\/p>\n “It was a sad loss – she lived 72 years and to die that way is just tragic. It’s been a disaster.”<\/p>\n The family said they hoped the incident would raise awareness about escalators. <\/p>\n They added: “I can’t imagine what was in her head – Catherine was not a wee lightweight and had a bulky wheelchair.<\/p>\n “To even attempt to go down an escalator – I can’t imagine why, it’s shocking.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n McWhannell was suspended from her job pending an investigation.<\/p>\n Ian McCarthy, defending, said: “She deeply regrets her involvement in this matter and that it took place.”<\/p>\n Sheriff Gilroy described it as an “utterly tragic” case.<\/p>\n She said: “This was an isolated incident caused by a dreadful decision made by an otherwise law abiding member of society.<\/p>\n “A prison sentence of up to 26 weeks would not help rehabilitation and I am persuaded there is an alternative to custody.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n‘Horrible mistake’ <\/h2>\n<\/p>\n