Archie Battersbee's father released from hospital after being taken ill

The father of a 12-year-old boy at the centre of a life support treatment fight has left hospital after being taken ill outside court on Monday.

Paul Battersbee became ill on Monday shortly before Court of Appeal judges ruled his son Archie could be disconnected from a ventilator.

The family is expected to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

A 48-hour delay to ending treatment was ordered so the family could prepare an appeal.

Archie has not regained consciousness since he was found by his mother, Hollie Dance, who believed he had been taking part in an online challenge.

Mr Battersbee, who is in his 50s, fell ill shortly before Court of Appeal judges supported a High Court ruling that ending his life support was lawful and in his best interests.

They were asked to postpone their ruling as Mr Battersbee had been taken ill outside court, but they refused.

Ms Dance also wanted judges to adjourn their ruling on the basis that she had "video evidence" that indicated that Archie, who is attached to a ventilator, had twice tried to breathe for himself on Friday and Saturday.

A lawyer representing Mr Battersbee and Ms Dance, said they are considering a challenge to the appeal judges' ruling.

David Foster, based at law firm Moore Barlow, said Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee, who are separated but both live in Southend, Essex, planned to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

Doctors treating Archie at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, think he is brain-stem dead and say continued life-support treatment is not in his best interests.

Barts Health NHS Trust, which runs the hospital in Whitechapel in east London, had taken the case to the courts to get a ruling on what was in the best interests of Archie, who the court heard suffered catastrophic brain injuries.

Judges in two separate High Court hearings had previously ruled against his parents, who wanted treatment to continue while his heart was still beating.

On Monday, Sir Andrew McFarlane, Lady Justice King and Lord Justice Peter Jackson refused to overturn the last High Court judgement by Mr Justice Hayden.

It means life support treatment can lawfully end.

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