The Manchester Evening News reports that at the trial ,Johnson testified that he was afraid he had been ‘drugged’ and feared that he was going to be ‘raped or sexually assaulted’. After his arrest, he had told police officers he’d taken some white powder he believed to be cocaine and then began to feel unwell.
Cocaine and ketamine were found in the bloodstream of both David Toulson and James Johnson.
He told the court he had put David in something he called a ‘guillotine chokehold’ and ‘kept hold of his friend until he felt it was safe to let go’.
An inquest held in Bolton this week heard that asphyxiation from compression on David’s neck was the likely cause of death, and ‘such pressure would need to be sustained for probably several minutes’.
The inquest was told that there was ‘significant’ bruising on David’s neck, as well as deep soft tissue damage, along with ‘excessive bruising and fractures’ to his larynx.
Johnson told the inquest he remembered ‘putting the lock on’ and then ‘blacking out or passing out’, and that when he came to he was ‘still in the hold’ and didn’t know how long that had been.
James Johnson was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter in Manchester Crown Court last year, but an inquest into David Toulson’s death is ongoing. (Facebook)
David’s sister, Marie Buckley, told the inquest that he had been ‘a supportive brother and friend’ and as someone who ‘was jovial and loved life’.
She said: “Even though he would make jovial [sexual] references, he would never cross that line to the point of making someone uncomfortable. That was never his intention – and that’s not who he was as a person, certainly not in my presence.
“My brother has been portrayed as a sexual predator. He’s not here to have his own voice. Hopefully what it allows me to do is have that platform to tell you about David and to highlight that it wasn’t one sided banter – it was mutual.
“When I received David’s belongings back, I wasn’t able to see full conversations, but what I saw is that it shows the sexual banter and context wasn’t just one sided. It was initiated from Mr Johnson as well. The banter was very much mutual.
“My voice is David’s voice. My brother sustained a violent and prolonged attack.”
Featured Image Credit: Police Handout / Facebook
