Category Archives: Police

Police in England and Wales ‘twice as likely’ to fine young BAME men during lockdown

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Analysis of fixed-penalty notices found group as a whole were 1.6 times more likely to be fined than white people

Police were twice as likely to fine young black and Asian men under the lockdown rules than their white counterparts, according to new figures that underline concerns about racial bias in policing.

Analysis of fixed-penalty notices issued under the coronavirus regulations by National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) found that black, Asian and minority ethnic people (BAME) were 1.6 times more likely to be fined than white people.

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Portland mayor teargassed by federal agents during protest – video

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The mayor of Portland was teargassed by federal agents during protests against the presence of the agents sent by Donald Trump to quell unrest in the city.

Ted Wheeler, the Democratic mayor of the city in Oregon, said it was the first time he had been teargassed. Protesters had lit a large fire and armed agents launched teargas and stun grenades into the crowd.

Wheeler was mostly jeered by demonstrators who have clashed nightly with federal agents. The mayor has opposed the federal agents’ presence, but has faced harsh criticism for not taking more action to protect citizens

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Trump announces ‘surge of federal law enforcement’ into cities including Chicago – video

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Donald Trump announced at a White House event on Wednesday he will send 'a surge of federal law enforcement' into US cities that are 'plagued by violent crime'.

Trump's administration has been criticised for sending federal agents to crack down on protests against racism in Portland, Oregon

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Portland mayor demands removal of camouflage-clad agents detaining protesters – video

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The mayor of Portland, Oregon, has demanded that Donald Trump remove camouflage-clad federal agents deployed to the city after they attacked Black Lives Matter protesters and some detained people far from the federal property they were sent to protect

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Police ability to detain EU suspects ‘slower’ without Brexit deal

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Senior officer says powers less effective if UK forces are denied access to criminal databases

The ability of UK police forces to detain criminal suspects from the EU will become slower and less effective if the government fails to seal a Brexit security deal, a senior officer has told MPs.

Richard Martin, a deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan police and the lead for Brexit and international criminality, said forces would lose the “instant, at your fingertips” access to EU-wide databases on criminals and criminal activity that could be the difference between catching a criminal and losing them.

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Coronavirus: what are the rules over face masks in English shops?

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Exemptions, enforcement and business reaction to the news that coverings will be compulsory from 24 July

With the government set to announce that wearing a face covering in shops and supermarkets will be mandatory in England from 24 July, here’s what you need to know about the new rules:

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Met police urged to investigate Dominic Cummings’ trip during Covid-19 lockdown

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Exclusive: ex-chief prosecutor’s lawyers say behaviour of Boris Johnson’s aide warrants ‘thorough investigation’

The Metropolitan police have been urged to launch an immediate investigation into Dominic Cummings’ trip from London to Durham at the height of the coronavirus outbreak by the former chief prosecutor for north-west England.

Lawyers for Nazir Afzal have written to the Met commissioner, Cressida Dick, arguing that the behaviour of Boris Johnson’s chief adviser during the lockdown warrants a “thorough investigation” by the force.

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Police smash car window of man on way home from C4 interview about police racism

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Ryan Colaço had been driving home from interview and was wrongly accused of concealing drugs

When an officer smashed in the window of Ryan Colaço’s car, after he was wrongly accused of concealing drugs, they did not know he was driving home from a TV interview in which he told of institutional racism in the police after being stopped and searched the week before.

In the original incident, in Northumberland Park, north London, at 11am on 23 May, Colaço said he was stopped after being “aggressively tailgated” by the Metropolitan police, with officers then running to his car and banging on his window. They later said they had been able to smell cannabis from his car.

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Woman sues police for telling her to cover up anti-Boris Johnson T-shirt

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Jessie-Lu Flynn told her ‘Fuck Boris’ slogan was in breach of Public Order Act at Black Lives Matter protest

A woman who was challenged by police officers for wearing an anti-Boris Johnson T-shirt at a Black Lives Matter demonstration is launching legal action against them over the right to free speech and political debate.

Jessie-Lu Flynn, an actor who is also the founder of the immersive theatre company Wide Eyes, estimates that she has attended more than a dozen demonstrations wearing the “Fuck Boris” T-shirt without being challenged by the police.

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Six seriously injured in Glasgow attack and suspect killed by police

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Two teenagers and a police officer in hospital after man went on attack at hotel

Six people including a police officer and two teenagers were seriously injured, and the alleged perpetrator shot dead by police, after multiple stabbings at a hotel in central Glasgow.

Police Scotland said David Whyte, a 42-year-old constable, was in a “critical but stable condition” in hospital with five other men – aged 17, 18, 20, 38 and 53 – seriously injured, after a lone man went on the attack shortly before 1pm at the Park Inn hotel on West George Street.

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Policing of European Covid-19 lockdowns shows racial bias – report

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Amnesty says pandemic has led to greater ‘marginalisation, stigmatisation and violence’ in 12 countries including UK

The “disinfecting” of Roma communities by low-flying planes and the high number of fines handed to minority groups has been cited in a report as evidence of the racial bias in the policing of the coronavirus lockdowns in Europe.

The report by Amnesty International, examining the enforcement of physical distancing measures in 12 European countries, concludes that the pandemic has led to greater “marginalisation, stigmatisation and violence”, echoing the long-standing concerns aired by the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Hundreds run riot in Stuttgart city centre after drug checks

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More than 20 people arrested after police injured and shops looted in late-night rampage

German authorities have expressed shock over a rampage of an “unprecedented scale” in the centre of Stuttgart, where hundreds of partygoers ran riot overnight and into Sunday, breaking shop windows, plundering and attacking police.

Two dozen people, half of them German nationals, were provisionally arrested and police reported 19 officers hurt. “They were unbelievable scenes that have left me speechless. In my 46 years of police service, I have never experienced this,” said the Stuttgart police chief, Franz Lutz.

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Riots erupt in Stuttgart after police drug checks – video

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Police in the German city of Stuttgart have said 20 people were arrested and four police officers injured after a drugs check in the city centre sparked attacks on officers and police vehicles and widespread vandalism of stores. The disturbance started as an apparent reaction to the police’s search for drugs, as groups of people partied in a central park late on Saturday night. According to German TV reports, people then attacked store fronts in a nearby shopping street, tearing up paving stones and smashing store windows

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Chechnya’s leader blames police failures for violence in Dijon

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Ramzan Kadyrov defends compatriots in France after an attack on Chechen teenager sparked unrest

Ramzan Kadyrov, the autocratic leader of Chechnya, has expressed support for compatriots involved in clashes in the French city of Dijon this month, saying they were protecting one of their own because police failed to act.

Kadyrov’s message came as French police carried out raids and made a number of arrests of Chechens after several nights of violence blamed on members of the Chechen community from last Friday to Monday, when the city was rocked by clashes and car burnings.

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France vows to end violence in Dijon after fourth night of unrest

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Police say alleged assault on Chechen boy may have sparked reprisals in Grésilles area

The French government has vowed to bring an end to violence in the usually placid eastern city of Dijon after it was hit by a fourth night of unrest allegedly linked to score-settling by members of the Chechen community.

According to police, the incidents appear to have been sparked by an alleged assault this month on a 16-year-old Chechen boy, prompting reprisal raids.

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Boris Johnson’s racism inquiry: have previous ones changed anything?

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The PM’s commission will be the latest in a line of initiatives examining race inequalities

Boris Johnson has announced a “cross-governmental commission” into racial disparities in education, health and criminal justice. It is the latest of a series of reports into ethnic injustices over recent years.

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Racism campaigners call for police watchdog to be abolished

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Black families whose relatives have died in police incidents demand end to systemic racism

Black families in the UK whose loved ones have died in incidents involving the police have called for the abolition of the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which investigates the police, and the immediate suspension of officers involved in deaths as part of a new plan to address systemic racism and unlawful killings.

The United Families & Friends Campaign (UFFC), which supports family members of those who have died following police incidents, has drawn up an eight-point plan calling for fundamental changes to the way deaths involving the police are dealt with. A disproportionately high number of these deaths involving the police are black and the UFFC said that failing to successfully prosecute police sends the message that the state can act with impunity.

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Police seek protests ban after 23 officers injured in London rallies

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Head of police union for England and Wales calls for emergency law during Covid-19 pandemic

Priti Patel has been urged to impose an emergency ban on all protests after Britain’s biggest police force condemned the “mindless hooliganism” and “utterly shocking” violence of far-right activists against its officers in London.

The head of the body representing rank-and-file police officers in England and Wales called for tougher restrictions on demonstrations after 23 officers were injured and more than 100 people were arrested during clashes in London on Saturday.

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‘Stop the pain’: Philonise Floyd testifies at House hearing on police brutality – video

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Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, described the pain of watching the video of his brother's murder - which showed a police officer kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes - during his opening remarks at a House judiciary committee hearing on police brutality. 'I can’t tell you the kind of pain you feel when you watch something like that,' he said: 'When you watch your big brother, who you’ve looked up to your whole life, die. Die begging for your mom'

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